Mefloquine Hydrochloride 250 mg Suppliers & Bulk Manufacturers

Available Forms: Tablets

Available Strengths: 250 mg

Reference Brands: Lariam (USA/EU)

Category: Antimalarial Drugs

Mefloquine is an antimalarial medication used for both the prevention and treatment of malaria caused by Plasmodium species, particularly P. falciparum and P. vivax. It is taken orally and helps inhibit parasite growth within red blood cells.

Product Description:

Mefloquine is a quinoline-methanol antimalarial, structurally related to quinine. It acts inside the parasite's food vacuole, interfering with the detoxification of haem released as the parasite digests haemoglobin. Free haem is toxic to the parasite, and preventing its safe sequestration kills it. Mefloquine is active against the blood stages of all human malaria species, including chloroquine-resistant Plasmodium falciparum.

It is used for malaria prophylaxis in travellers to chloroquine-resistant areas, taken weekly, and for treatment of uncomplicated malaria. Weekly dosing is its practical advantage over daily alternatives. Its reputation rests on neuropsychiatric adverse effects: vivid dreams, insomnia, anxiety, dizziness, and in a minority, depression, hallucinations and psychosis, which can persist after stopping. It carries a boxed warning in the United States and is contraindicated in anyone with a history of psychiatric illness or seizures.

Sourcing notes. Off patent. Use has fallen substantially in favour of atovaquone-proguanil and doxycycline for prophylaxis, and artemisinin-based combinations for treatment, so this is a declining rather than growing line. Note that resistance is established along the Thai-Cambodian and Thai-Myanmar borders. Store below 30 degrees, protect from moisture and light.