Lariam

Lariam Product Description

Drug Uses

Lariam is an antimalarial drug, used in treatment and prophylaxis of malaria. Lariam destroys erythrocyte forms of human malarial parasites like Plasmodium vivax, Plasmodium falciparum, Plasmodium malariae, and Plasmodium ovale.

Besides, Lariam is effective in cases when malarial parasites are resistant to other antimalarials (such as chloroquine, and pyrimethamine). Lariam is prescribed to children aged above 6 months, adults and elderly patients for:

• prevention of malaria
• treatment of acute malaria infections

A single Lariam dose of 1.250 mg per day is indicated for treatment of mild to moderate malaria in adults (5 250mg tablets of Lariam). To prevent malaria, the adult patients are advised to take one 250 mg tablet of Lariam once weekly. For treatment of malaria infections in pediatric patients, Lariam dose is calculated according to body weight. Usually, it is 20 to 25 mg per kg of body weight per day.

Missed Dose

If you’ve accidentally failed to comply with the malaria therapy course, and forgotten to take a dose of Lariam in time, just take the tablet as soon as possible. But if it is nearly time for the next dose of the antimalarial agent, do not take extra Lariam pill to make up for the missed dose.

More Information

For prophylaxis, application of Lariam should be started one week before travel to endemic malaria countries. To reduce the risk of malaria after leaving an endemic aria, the prophylaxis is recommended to be continued for 4 weeks more.

To achieve the therapeutic efficacy of Lariam antimalarial drug and to reduce the risk of side effects, the patients are recommended to take the prescribed dose of Lariam at the same time with a meal. If the patient’s state is not improved within 2-3 days, Lariam antimalarial drug should be replaced with another antimalarial drug.

Storage

Lariam should be stored in an original blister, because the tablets are sensitive to moisture. If you noticed that Lariam pills were wet, or had passed their shelf life, they should be discarded immediately. Store the tablets of Lariam out of reach of children at room temperature not exceeding 30°C.

Lariam Safety Information

Warnings

Lariam may increase the risk of convulsions, therefore, patients with epilepsy should use the antimalarial drug only for curative treatment. Lariam tablets should be taken with caution by the patients with cardiac conduction disorders, because Lariam may cause disturbances of heart rhythm and cardiac conduction. In some patients, Lariam may cause polyneuropathy. In case of the first symptoms of this disorder (sensitivity disorder, tremor, muscle weakness), the patients should stop taking the drug to prevent development of irreversible side effects.

Disclaimer

The information provided in this Lariam review is used for information purposes only, it does not serve as a replacement for personal advice or treatment of malaria infections from a licensed primary health care worker. The online pharmacy shall not be responsible for any consequences associated with misinterpreting this material on Lariam antimalarial agent.

Lariam Side Effects

Usually Lariam may cause mild adverse events which pass quickly. If the antimalarial agent is used for a long period, the adverse events disappear completely. In case of high doses of Lariam, some adverse events can be very similar to the symptoms of malaria. Most often while taking the antimalarial agent, the patients complain of such adverse events, as abnormal dreams, headache, insomnia, vomiting, abdominal pain, nausea, loss of appetite, diarrhoea, chills, skin rash, myalgia, tinnitusm and fever.