# Mebendazole in Nigeria

Mebendazole has 3 active NAFDAC registrations in our October 2026 copy of the register, from 3 registration holders; 3 further listings have lapsed.

- Source: https://ogbogwu.com/drugs/mebendazole/
- Drug class: Benzimidazole anthelmintic (Antiparasitics)
- Also known as: Vermox, Wormin, Mebox, Deworming tablet, Worm expeller
- Prescription required: no
- On the WHO Model List of Essential Medicines
- Last updated: October 2026

## Price in Nigeria

As of October 2026, Mebendazole tablets sell for about ₦3,080 per tablet online in Nigeria (packs ₦1,785–₦5,550) at MedPlus and Supermart.ng; syrup ₦16,800. Open-market prices (e.g. Idumota, Ogbogwu) are often lower.

## What is Mebendazole?

Mebendazole is a deworming medicine — an anthelmintic — that kills the common intestinal worms: roundworm, hookworm, whipworm and threadworm (pinworm). It works by starving the worm of the sugar it needs, so the worms die over a few days and pass out in the stool, sometimes visibly. It is barely absorbed from the gut, which is what makes it so safe: it acts where the worms are and very little reaches the rest of the body. It is on the WHO Model List of Essential Medicines and is sold without a prescription in Nigeria.

Most Nigerians know it by an older name. Vermox, the Janssen original, and Wormin, an Indian import, were the names on chemist shelves for decades; neither appears in our current copy of the NAFDAC register, and the market today is Nigerian-made 100 mg tablets — Fidson Mebendazole 100 (A11-100341), MeCure's Mebendazole (A11-0714) and GoldMoore's Mebox (A4-7734), all recorded Active — plus Emzor's 100 mg tablet and 500 mg chewable, whose registrations our copy records as Inactive. A pack sold as Vermox or Wormin should be checked with particular care, because the name is doing work the register no longer backs.

Mebendazole and albendazole are close cousins and are often used interchangeably for routine deworming. Albendazole is better absorbed, so it is the one chosen when the worm has left the gut — hydatid cysts, neurocysticercosis, some tissue infections — and it is the standard single-dose tablet in Nigeria's school deworming programme. For the ordinary gut worms a household picks up, either works.

## What is Mebendazole used for?

- Threadworm (Enterobius) — the itchy bottom at night that passes round a family
- Roundworm (Ascaris), hookworm and whipworm (Trichuris), singly or together
- Routine periodic deworming in children from about one year of age, and in adults
- Hookworm-related anaemia, together with iron treatment

## Dosage

Always follow a doctor's or pharmacist's instructions; this is general reference information.

- Adults: For threadworm: one 100 mg tablet as a single dose, repeated after two weeks because eggs survive the first dose — and the whole household treated the same day. For roundworm, hookworm and whipworm: 100 mg twice a day for three days, or a single 500 mg tablet. Routine deworming: 500 mg once, or 100 mg twice daily for three days, every three to six months in areas where worms are common. Tablets can be chewed, crushed or swallowed, with or without food; the 500 mg tablet is made to be chewed.
- Children: From one year of age children take the same doses as adults — the worms are the same size whoever carries them. Children under one year are not routinely given mebendazole; between one and two years it is given in deworming programmes under health-worker direction. Crush the tablet into a little food for a child who cannot chew it safely.
- Elderly: No dose change.

Threadworm reinfection is the rule, not the exception: treat everyone in the house on the same day, wash bedding and underwear in hot water, cut and scrub fingernails, and repeat the dose at two weeks. Worms may be seen in the stool for a few days after treatment; that is the medicine working. Deworming does not need to be done more often than every three months, and a child who is still pot-bellied or anaemic after treatment needs a clinic visit, not a second strip.

## Side effects

Common: Stomach pain, wind, bloating or mild diarrhoea, especially when there are many worms to expel; Nausea; occasionally headache.

Serious (seek medical help immediately): Allergic reaction — rash, hives, swelling of the face or lips, difficulty breathing; Convulsions have been reported, mostly in infants, which is why it is not given routinely under one year; At the high, prolonged doses used for tissue infections (not for ordinary deworming): low blood counts and liver upset.

When to see a doctor: Ordinary deworming rarely needs a doctor. See one for severe or persistent abdominal pain, vomiting that will not stop, a rash or swelling after the dose, a convulsion, or if a child remains pale, pot-bellied or failing to grow after treatment — the cause may not be worms, or may be a worm mebendazole does not kill, such as bilharzia or tapeworm.

## Warnings

Do not take if: Known allergy to mebendazole or albendazole; Routine use in children under one year; First three months of pregnancy, unless a doctor judges the benefit outweighs the small risk.

Interactions: Carbamazepine and phenytoin lower mebendazole levels — only relevant for the high-dose tissue regimens, not for deworming; Cimetidine raises its levels; Taking mebendazole and metronidazole together has been linked to rare severe skin reactions (Stevens-Johnson syndrome); avoid the combination unless a doctor has chosen it; No interaction with food; a fatty meal increases absorption, which matters only for tissue infections.

Pregnancy & breastfeeding: Avoid in the first trimester because of a theoretical risk shown in animal studies, although large studies of women who took it accidentally have not shown harm. After the first trimester the WHO supports treating hookworm in pregnancy in areas where it is common, because the anaemia it causes is the greater danger. Very little passes into breast milk and breastfeeding can continue.

## Brands in Nigeria

Well-known NAFDAC-registered brands: Mebox (GoldMoore International Limited, made in Nigeria); Fidson Mebendazole 100 (Fidson Healthcare PLC, made in Nigeria); MeCure's Mebendazole (Me Cure Industries Limited, made in Nigeria); Emzor Mebendazole (Emzor Pharmaceutical Industries Limited, made in Nigeria); Emzor Mebendazole 500 Chewable (Emzor Pharmaceutical Industries Limited, made in Nigeria).
Full searchable brand list: https://ogbogwu.com/drugs/mebendazole/brands/

## How to verify it is genuine

1. Check the strip or box for its NAFDAC registration number. In our copy of the register Mebox (A4-7734, GoldMoore), Fidson Mebendazole 100 (A11-100341) and MeCure's Mebendazole (A11-0714) are Active
2. Emzor Mebendazole 100 mg (A11-100065) and Emzor Mebendazole 500 Chewable (A11-100066) are recorded as Inactive in our copy — common products, and a lapse is a renewal matter for the holder rather than proof of a fake, but confirm the current status on the official Greenbook
3. Vermox and Wormin appear nowhere in our copy of the register. A pack carrying either name should be looked up by its printed number, and refused if it carries none
4. Enter the number in our free NAFDAC checker and confirm the product name, strength and manufacturer match the pack. Deworming tablets are cheap, which keeps counterfeits rare, but expired stock in hot shops is common — check the expiry date too

Verify any NAFDAC number free (no login): https://ogbogwu.com/nafdac-checker/

## FAQs

### Is mebendazole (Vermox) NAFDAC approved in Nigeria?

Mebendazole is, under several Nigerian-made brands: Fidson Mebendazole 100 (A11-100341), MeCure's Mebendazole (A11-0714) and Mebox (A4-7734) are all Active in our copy of the register, and Emzor's two products are recorded Inactive. Vermox itself — and Wormin — do not appear in our current copy. Check the number printed on your pack in our NAFDAC checker rather than relying on the name.

### How often should I deworm?

In most of Nigeria, every three to six months for children and for adults who eat out, farm, or live where sanitation is poor; the WHO recommends once or twice a year for school-age children in high-burden areas, which is what the school programme does. More often than every three months adds nothing. Treat the household together, and treat threadworm twice, two weeks apart.

### Mebendazole or albendazole — which is better?

For the ordinary gut worms, either: both kill roundworm, hookworm, whipworm and threadworm, and both are safe and cheap. Albendazole is better absorbed, so it is the choice for worms that have moved into tissue (hydatid, cysticercosis) and for strongyloides, and its single 400 mg dose makes it the standard in mass deworming. Mebendazole's 500 mg single tablet does the same job for routine deworming. Neither treats bilharzia (praziquantel does) or scabies and river blindness (ivermectin does).

### What is the dose of mebendazole for adults and children?

The same from one year of age upwards: one 100 mg tablet for threadworm, repeated after two weeks; or 100 mg twice daily for three days, or a single 500 mg tablet, for roundworm, hookworm and whipworm and for routine deworming. Children under one year are not given it routinely. Chew or crush the tablet if swallowing is difficult; food does not matter.

### Can I take mebendazole while pregnant?

Not in the first three months unless a doctor advises it. After that, treating hookworm in pregnancy is supported by the WHO in areas where it is common, because hookworm anaemia harms mother and baby more than the medicine is likely to. Take it only on antenatal advice, alongside iron and folic acid.

## Sources

- NAFDAC Greenbook (official register of approved products in Nigeria)
- WHO Model List of Essential Medicines
- British National Formulary (BNF)
- Nigerian Standard Treatment Guidelines (Federal Ministry of Health)