Artemisinin-based combination therapy: knowledge and perceptions of patent medicine dealers in Owerri Metropolis, Imo State, Nigeria and implications for compliance with current malaria treatment protocol.

This study was done to access the knowledge and perceptions of Patent Medicine Dealers (PMDs) in Owerri Metropolis of Nigeria about Artemisinin Based Combination Therapy as first line treatment for malaria using structured pre-tested questionnaires administered to 80 randomly selected and consenting respondents. About 67.5 and 32.5 % of males and females respectively participated in the study. Most of them (56.3 %) had secondary school education with about 50 % having 5-10 years experience in the business. The level of knowledge was shown to be high (82.5 %), with 81.3 % having proper understanding of the term "artemisinin-based combination therapies (ACTs)" and 80 % knowing the correct dosage for ACTs. But despite the level of awareness, only 32.5 % knew the correct timing for administration of the drugs. The result of this study showed no significant relationship between the level of knowledge and either educational attainment (χ(2) = 4.889, df = 4, p value = 0.558) or the years of experience (χ(2) = 29.095, df = 4, p value = 0.000) although knowledge improved a bit as experience increased. 93.8 % in the study reported that ACTs are more effective than other anti-malarial drugs. The quantity of ACT available on counters are low and there is no significant relationship (χ(2) = 18.833, df = 6, p value = 0.004) between the availability of ACT and the quantity of ACT available in stock at the time of this study. This study shows that awareness on ACTs has improved among PMDs, even though other anti-malarial drugs are still in use and are marketed by them. It becomes necessary that efforts towards awareness be scaled up with emphasis on recommended time of administration and correct prescriptions to enhance and sustain intermittent presumptive treatment as an effective method of malaria control since this group of people still provide the major access to drugs in Nigeria and other tropical endemic areas.