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esoteric1
Dec 23, 2006, 2:54 AM
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hey,
looking for advice on malaria pills/ profalac....whatever
ive heard alot of different ideas on what to take and whatnot, anyone been there and what have you taken?
mark
(This post was edited by esoteric1 on Dec 23, 2006, 2:11 PM)
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melekzek
Dec 23, 2006, 10:36 PM
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i think different kinds of pills are used, depending on the region you are going. you can check with the local hospitals when you arrive there, or find a doctor who knows the region...
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redpointron
Dec 23, 2006, 11:57 PM
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i just went to india. i took malarone. i forget the name of the other two options i was given. the one has some spooky psychotropic side effects. and the other (which my wife took) she had to take for a month after returning.
ask your doctor.
regards.
r.r.
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olive
Dec 24, 2006, 12:31 AM
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hey, I know what melekzek said. Different regions, different pills - you should ask a specialist.
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beyond_gravity
Dec 24, 2006, 5:23 PM
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keep in mind that (as far as my knowledge goes) no pill actually prevents malaria, it only reduces the symptoms after you get it. It's still a nasty bug, the best thing you can do is spray on the deet!
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thomasribiere
Dec 24, 2006, 5:58 PM
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redpointron wrote: i just went to india. i took malarone. i forget the name of the other two options i was given. the one has some spooky psychotropic side effects. and the other (which my wife took) she had to take for a month after returning. ask your doctor. regards. r.r.
About the psychotrophic effects, be really aware of them. A friend of mine almost killed his gf after a treatment - it was 2 yrs ago. Seriously, I'm not kidding for once.
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esoteric1
Dec 24, 2006, 6:05 PM
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prevention is the best medicine for sure, but...what i originaly was trying to get at, is besides the specific chemical you take, i guess some of the strains are resistant to certain pills....that i understand, but some pills are prophalactic, as in you take it once you get malaria, others you take once a day, and others you take once a week.
besides all of this, does anyone have experience with the stuff you wash your clothes in that supposedly kills bugs once they come in contact with it?
thanks
mark
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dbattman
Dec 25, 2006, 3:50 AM
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You're refering to Permethrin.
You can buy it off the shelf in two forms- a spray-on treatment or a liquid treatment where you shake everything in a bag. I've used the spray-on treatments several times and they work well for the bugs. It runs about $5 a can which is enough to treat two 'sets' of socks, pants, shirt. The readily available stuff is 0.5% Permethrin but I believe the military has access to higher concentrations. You can get it at Wal-mart or any outdoor/sports store.
Do your research with the anti-malarials as some of them will cause sun sensitivity.
Antimalarial search I took malarone for a month with no problems, several others I was with took Mefloquine with no problems. The provider at the travel clinic recommended Malarone for me simply because we would be isolated and it had the potential for 'vivid dreams' and other side affects.
On a side-note it sounds like you're headed for the tropics. Visit a travel-clinic for a checkup and info. Look into the following vaccines for the area you are heading to:
Yellow fever
Hep A
Hep B
Tetanus
Typhoid
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ryanb
Dec 26, 2006, 1:28 AM
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Meflequin (sp) is the one with the nasty mental issues...i did a loading test (three days at high dosage) at home and was fine but once i started takeing them overseas everything went to hell (felt like people at home were plotting against me, crazy dreams) so I took myself off them and figured the local's weren't takeing anything, why should I.
Go to a travel clinic and talk over the options with them.
While you are there get perscriptions for a few other things...something for ameobic dysentry, something for skin inffections (there is a good one that works for lungs too) and a nice pain killer for if you have to drag yourself out from somewhere and maybe some diamox if your gona be at altitude (just a few tablets to help you evac if you need it). Dysentry one was the only one i ever used but it probably saved my life.
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melekzek
Dec 26, 2006, 3:20 AM
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ryanb wrote: I took myself off them and figured the local's weren't takeing anything, why should I.
People living in regions where malaria is endemic, can develop acquired immunity since they have been exposed to the disease earlier.
This is also true for many other diseases or sicknesses. Thats why you can get sick just moving to another country, subsaharan africa or europe or japan, and it has nothing to do with how developed/safe the region is. Case in point, many of my friends moving from turkey to US got sick within the first few months.
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thomasribiere
Dec 26, 2006, 7:07 AM
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melekzek wrote: ryanb wrote: I took myself off them and figured the local's weren't takeing anything, why should I. People living in regions where malaria is endemic, can develop acquired immunity since they have been exposed to the disease earlier. This is also true for many other diseases or sicknesses. Thats why you can get sick just moving to another country, subsaharan africa or europe or japan, and it has nothing to do with how developed/safe the region is. Case in point, many of my friends moving from turkey to US got sick within the first few months.
yes, there was a movie on how eating fast food junk can impair your health...
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matterunomama
Dec 26, 2006, 3:28 PM
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Do not take a chance on getting malaria, it is a nasty illness. In the US it is considered a potential medical emergency. Worldwide 500 million people a year become acutely ill and One million DIE--although those deaths are mostly children in sub-saharan Africa, it is a very unpleasant illness. People who live in endemic areas are only 'semi-immune', meaning when they get the disease, they are at lower risk for complications and serious disease; they are still most emphatically ill when they get it, like a bad flu. They got their original infection either through a mosquito or were born with it transmitted thru the mothers blood. You can also get it like you do HIV, thru needles or blood transfusion.
PREVENTION/PROPHYLAXIS IS NOT PERFECT! if you go to a malaria prone area you should also avoid mosquito bites with protective clothing, bed nets and the chemical DEET.
THERE IS NO ONE BEST DRUG. The choice of prevention/prophylaxis and treatment drug depends on where you are traveling, resistance patterns, and special problems with each drug. Personally I would go to a travel medicine specialist to get the prescription.
The one that with the wierd psychiatric effects is called Larium. The generic name is Mefloquine. The drugs are expensive but buy them in the US, the foreign ones can be substandard or even dangerous. I was shocked to find that my insurance plan doesn't cover prevention of malaria, though they kindly agreed to cover treatment if we got ill (gee, thanks)
So, go to a doctor if you are going where there is malaria. OK, I'm stepping off my soapbox now....
Current information about country specific risks and recommendations are on the CDC website:
www.cdc.gov/travel/malariadrugs2.htm
This is actually the website the physician or PA would use to figure out which drugs will work where you are going, then judge which one /combo is best based on the sideeffects and how religious you are likely to be in taking them.
Have a great trip!
(This post was edited by matterunomama on Dec 26, 2006, 3:33 PM)
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awilson86
Dec 27, 2006, 6:40 PM
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ive been into kenya twice over the last 3 years doing missionary work. the first time (04) i took a once weekly pill and that had some REALLY bad effects. depression, anxeity, paranoia. the works.
i would recommend the once daily. seems to be the better bet.
as far as locals immunity. they are not immune, but they are more resistant. malaria is also something that sticks with you. i know a guy that has it come back up every few years. but in most mid/upper (compareatively) areas they have pretty good medication that takes care of it in about 2-3 days on average.
also, definatly get EVERY immunization recommended for the region you are visiting. right now im vaccinated for heb a/b, yellow fever, typhoid, tetnus and im heading back friday for diptheria, polio and a update on thyphoid (heading back over seas next month).
its important to make sure you get everything you can here because you can count on it being better quality.
also make sure you follow basic food safety like not eating fruit that you dont know has been washed, using a straw for drinks etc.
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thomasribiere
Dec 27, 2006, 6:42 PM
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awilson86 wrote: ive been into kenya twice over the last 3 years doing missionary work.
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wjca
Dec 27, 2006, 7:07 PM
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I prefer quinine, commonly found in tonic water. The taste of tonic water is a bit bitter, however, so I like to mix a little lime juice and vodka in mine. You could also use gin.
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searchfoursoul
Sep 20, 2008, 2:40 AM
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sounds dangerous
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Chappy76
Sep 20, 2008, 5:41 AM
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When I deployed to Africa we took the antibiotic doxycycline daily because as aircrew members we couldn't take mefloquine. If you do end up taking the doxy make sure you use lots of sunscreen. Prevention is the key, good luck.
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sungam
Sep 20, 2008, 9:54 AM
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searchfoursoul wrote: sounds dangerous
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