I'm going to India, and my doc prescribes Mefloquine (Lariam) that you take once a week. Has anyone used this, and what side effects did you experience?

I've read that it can cause nightmares, hallucinations, depression, anxiety, psychotic fits. Yikes! As if India won't be giving me those symptoms already! Some even develop extremely itchy rashes on their skin.

Anything that you can do to alleviate those side effects? Please share your experience. Thanks!

Just returned from Africa where my companion and I took Malarone, which also warned of a bunch of potential side effects, esp. nausea and sight problems.

However, neither of us had any trouble taking it whatsoever (except for remembering to take it once a day at meals). I did look up Malarone on the 'net and found a medical site that actually gave the results of clinical studies w/r to effectiveness and percentage of people who had the different listed possible side effects.

As it turned out, the effectiveness was quite high, and the percentage of people having side effects was low, so it gave me a bit of reassurance. I should think you should be able to do the same kind of search for Mefloquine.

jim

We have been going to India for the last 25 years and have always been taking Lariam. Unlike Malarone you only have to take it once a week. In our family none of us have had side effects but I have read of people who have had very bad side effects (including troops in Afghanistan).
The only side effect I tend to get is after taking it for three or four weeks I get some minor nausea . Almost like the pregnancy related morning sickness. There is a lot of Malaria in India including some kinds which are resistant to other drugs. I heard there was dengue recently so please make sure you take bug sprays.

Miriam

Check the www.cdc.gov/travel site for specifics on travel to India and the areas you will be visiting.

There are some malaria meds that are no longer effective in parts of the world, so you certainly don't want to be taking the wrong med.

Malarone is the newest preventative (not an innoculation) and so far hasn't yet become resistent as Lariam has in many parts of the world.

If Malarone appears on the cdc site, I would recommend this one, as it is supposed to have the least side-effects. While you have to take this pill daily, with food, preferably dairy (milk, cheese, yogurt) few have any problems with this.

Malarone can be more expensive than Lariam which is now available as a generic, but even the generic price isn't that much cheaper.

Review the information and return to your physician to discuss further; if you want Malarone instead of Lariam ask for it.

As to Dengue, no pills for this and the mossie bites during the day, so repellent necessary during this time.

"As if India wont be giving me those symptoms already!"- JC98

Hmmmmmmm

Lots of travellers do come to India to "Find themselves" and get rid of the anxiety and depression and all the other "stuff".....just a thought.

Malaria- what parts of India are you going to?

Either way, in true Indian hospitatlity, let me say Welcome to our country in advance.......

Hari

You going to Delhi? Good luck there.....hundreds of people died last month with the dengue outbreak there....

Hari

My standard advice is to do a dry run and take these meds. prior to going to see how you tolerate. I didn't, and found out the hard way that I couldn't keep malarone down. That, however, is NOT a common side effect. DH did not have any problems.
Our travel doc. rec. malarone over Larium due to his own experience with hallucinations in the bush - NOT common but can happen.
Sherry

Hi - I am the sort of person who hates taking drugs of any kind and I chose Malarone for my Zambia trip. I took it every evening at dinner (when your stomach is so full of food!) and never had one side effect from it. I would chooose it pover Larium, but you should of course talk to your doc again about this option.

Good luck and have a great trip to India.

I've taken Mefloquine for several trips in the past, and the first time I had some vivid dreams (not too awful) but no other symptoms. When I went to India earlier this year I took it again, and this time I had some really frightening hallucinations 2 nights in a row, after getting home from my trip (so by that point I'd been taking it for a month). My husband is a doctor, and he's pretty certain that was a symptom of the Mefloquine. So I am not particularly looking forward to taking it again for my trip to East Africa next year. However, the friends we went to India with both took Malarone and had a very hard time with it -- she had vision problems and was extremely sick to her stomach after she took it each day (vomited several times), and he also had some nausea from the drug. They also thought it was harder to have to take something daily instead of weekly. All things considered, I will probably take the Mefloquine again and hope for the best.

Everyone will react differently to a drug. I've taken Larium on every trip to Africa and, other than a couple of weird dreams, never had a problem. I think that the best advice is to try a round of whichever drug you choose prior to leaving on your trip. You'll have the added expense of the drug, but you'll know in advance whether you can tolerate it, or not. You don't want to be on your trip in a malarial area and find out you can't take the drug you brought with you. In addition to taking the drugs, you should also take care to use mosquito repellent and cover up in the evenings when the mosquitos carrying the malaria parasite are active. That's your best protection.

Even trying a pill or two prior departure is no indication. Friends recently home from East Africa had taken the Malarone 2/days prior arriving with no problem whatsoever, then once in-country on two occasions, nausea and tossing cookies.

Another option is doxycycline, a generic antibiotic that many choose. It is way less expensive but has to be taken daily, and then for a month once you return home. Problems with this can be sun sensitivity, so SPF is a must, women can get "thrush" (discharge).

So, it's a toss up. Again, discuss with your physician and arm yourself with information from the cdc site (or others) when you meet with the professional.

Thanks, all, for sharing your experiences. I'd better ask my doc for malarone as well.

As for Lariam (mefloquine), how long do those side effects (nightmares, psychotic fits, etc.) last after you take the pill? 1 or 2 days or the entire week?

My body doesn't take drugs very well, so I'm quite wary about all they I hear.

thanks again!

As a physician who has had experience taking both medicines I will give you my $.02. Malarone definitely has less side effects than Larium and is out of your system faster. Larium causes more than just vivid dreams. It can cause depression (did in my case), and panic attacks (in my son's case on a different trip). Both these side effects were so out of character that there could have been no other cause. In my case the symptoms lasted 3-4 days after I had already returned home. My son's symptoms continued for many weeks and slightly less intensity over time and then went away completely and have never returned 3 years later. He subsequently has taken Malarone twice with no untoward effects. The main disadvantage to Malarone is remembering to take it once a day and the cost. Doxycycline is not a bad alternative as it is also useful for tick fever. Sun sensitivity is a problem and long sleeves and a broad brim hat are important as sun block is not really too protective for this. Also, tetracycline drugs like doxycycline can cause diarrhea in some people...not fun on safari. In any event take something as malaria can be very serious.

Larium at once a week pill is because it has a long afterlife, remaining in your system for quite sometime.

As to doxy, if female, and you choose this, also get a bottle of acidophylis (sp) tabs as a counter to "thrush" (discharge, which many of the older cycline meds are known to cause) just in case.

Hello JC98,
I've used Lariam without problems, and as Malarone is a lot more expensive, I will continue using it. I hate sun sensitivity, so Doxycycline is not an option.
Have a nice India trip. Why aren't you going to Africa?

Before we get into a debate about which is better let me just say that all the drugs have risks and benefits. When deciding which medicine to take it is important to weigh the risks and benefits of each. Each of the three drugs works and the risk of side effects for each is low however most recognize more severe side effects with larium. Even though most of my family had taken Larium without a problem at least once we all opted to take Malarone this July because of the past experience of some of us. I understand cost may be an issue and that ought to be taken in consideration as long as you recognize there is a bit more likelihood of side effects. Again I would say the risk of significant side effects is in general low with all three.

I noticed in one of the replies to this same question posted by you JC98, on the Asia board, that one of the posters said that the hallucination insidence from Larium is a wopping 33%. Therein lays the problem of asking this question to a forum of people who don't know you or your situation. Some of these people may not have their facts correct or may give you misleading info.

I would advise you to speak to the travel doc. who knows you and your history and is very familiar with these drugs.
Good luck!

Well, as it turned out I had better info. on Malarone vs. the alternatives than my doc or pharmacist, who, BTW, I think are great. That's because I found clinical study results on Malarone on the net. I don't envy medical professionals who can't be expected to know everything about every drug. Yes, one has to be careful as to what to believe on the internet, but if you know the source of the info, and get consistent conclusions from multiple sources (kinda like getting 2nd and 3rd opinions), you will be well armed in discussing the alternatives with your doc and in making an informed choice.

I took Malarone on my recent trip to Africa and had no trouble with nausea or keeping it down. I did however get really bad sores in my mouth that I've never had before. When I came back I asked the doctor and she said it was a side effect from the Malarone. While certainly not terrible compared to other's side effect from different drugs, the sores were very painful and uncomfortable.


Jenn

Eyelaser,

Off the topic, did you get to plan your Botswana safari....if so, we would love to hear of your itinerary.

Thanks
Hari