Is Hydroxychloroquine (all over the news today) similar to an old drug called mefloquine (brand name Larium) ?

Just coincidentally, the latest issue of DAV Magazine discusses mefloquine use by the DOD from 1989 to 2009, when DOD "issued directives effectively making it a last-choice drug for troops".

[url=https://www.dav.org/wp-content/uploads/Magazine_2020_MarApr.pdf][/url]https://www.dav.org/wp-content/uploads/Magazine_2020_MarApr.pdf

The article starts on p18.

I know I took my share of anti-malaria pills back then, but I don't know what I took.

Sounds like this anti-malaria drug messed up a lot of people.


(I did post this question on a thread in the Covid-19 forum. Lots of doctors over there.)

Was thinking about this as well. Glad someone raised this issue.

In the same boat, don't know what I took back then.

Stat Monitor Repairman said:

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Was thinking about this as well. Glad someone raised this issue.

In the same boat, don't know what I took back then.

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A lot of people in the military were given doxycycline or Ciprofloxacin. I was given the cipro because I am allergic to one of one of the trace ingredients in doxycycline.

Not sure what I took in the mid-nineties, but it made me nauseous if I did not take it with food.

I think Mefloquin, with prolonged use, caused sever nighmares in troops, which was exacerbated by combat and lead to more suicides, or so the story goes. At least that is what I was told as to why I was given doxy instead of the Mefloquin in 2010.

I was in Honduras in 1989, and taking anti-malarial drugs was mandatory. I don't remember what we were taking, but the Team Surgeon and other medical professionals told us flat out we could not donate blood for a minimum of six months and possibly a year. I wonder what ramifications did/ can/will surface from that experience

Took it multiple times in the 90's for extended periods. The two things I remember from taking it was the bitter taste and the violent dreams I had. While both were not pleasant to experience I had no other side effects (that I know of). The bitter taste was probably the worst, took them in the morning and had to tolerate that bitterness all day. I was also told by our Bn surgeon no donating blood, however I thought it was for a multiple year period. Actually tried to give blood about two years afterward and was told I could not. That was my experience. I can also say that I had two of my Marines get malaria while on the drug, so how effective it was is debatable. Just my humble experience.

Unless you watched them swallow the pills, there's decent chance they were not actually taking them. One of my corpsmen was saying on a prior deployment they had to medevac a few folks that nearly died from malaria. After that they had all hands formations daily and watched everyone individually take the pills. No more malaria.

Oh yeah, trust me after taking it for a week I did not want to take it. And if I would have been a Lcpl probably would have stopped taking it. Because we felt that way as a staff actually set it up to where each of the Corpsman were responsible to go to every Marine in their platoon and give them their bitter pill and watch each individual take it. Then had to report to their platoon and company leadership that the pills were taken. What is strange is when I see and talk with my Marines that were there those pills always come up. Good times