Meeting report of the technical consultation to review the classification of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD)

Meeting report of the technical consultation to review the classification of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) – 25 & 27 January 2022

WHO convened a panel of temporary advisors in January 2022 to review the current classification of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) and recommend changes where needed. Individuals affected by G6PD deficiency can develop acute haemolytic anaemia after exposure to 8-aminoquinolines tafenoquine and primaquine, the only available medicines that are effective against the hypnozoite stage of Plasmodium vivax. The deliberations of the meeting were informed by a literature review commissioned by WHO to examine G6PD activity for variants currently classified in Classes II and III, and by the presentation of an interim analysis of an individual patient meta-analysis of G6PD activity among genetic variants.