5 reasons why hydroxychloroquine is used!
The reasons why hydroxychloroquine is used in patients with malaria and corona virus are many, and they are currently being studied as possible treatments for COVID-19 that has manifested itself in the world at that time. This is the disease caused by the new virus . Also, this drug has not yet been approved by the FDA for this use.
Hydroxychloroquine is a prescription drug . It comes as an oral pill. Additionally, hydroxychloroquine is available as the brand-name drug Plaquenil. It is also available in a generic version. Generic drugs usually cost less than the branded version.
In some cases, they may not be available in all aspects or forms like the branded drug. In addition, it can be used as part of a combination therapy. This means you may need to take it with other medications.
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Why is hydroxychloroquine used?
Hydroxychloroquine is used to treat:
1. Lupus Treatment:
One of the reasons to take hydroxychloroquine is its benefit for treating lupus . In addition, the starting dose of hydroxychloroquine is 400 to 800 mg per day and the maintenance dose is 200 to 400 mg per day. Learn what lupus erythematosus is.
2. Treats rheumatoid and juvenile arthritis:
The starting dose is 400 to 600 mg per day and the maintenance dose is 200 to 400 mg per day. Also, learn about the symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis and how to treat it.
The dosage for chronic juvenile arthritis should not exceed 6.5 mg/kg body weight per day, up to a maximum daily dose of 400 mg.
3. Photosensitive diseases:
The recommended dose is 400 mg/day initially and then reduced to 200 mg daily. In addition, the ideal is that the treatment is started a few days before sun exposure.
4. Treats malaria:
Suppressive treatment: In adults, the recommended dose is 400 mg at weekly intervals and in children, it is 6.5 mg/kg of body weight, weekly.
The reason for taking hydroxychloroquine is its power in the treatment of malaria , it should be started 2 weeks before exposure or, if this is not possible, an initial dose of 800 mg in adults and 12.9 mg/kg in adults may be necessary. children, divided into two doses, 6 hours apart. In addition, treatment should continue for 8 weeks after leaving the endemic area.
5. Treatment of the acute crisis:
In adults, the initial dose is 800 mg followed by 400 mg after 6 to 8 hours and 400 mg daily for 2 consecutive days, or alternatively, a single dose of 800 mg can be taken.
In children, a first dose of 12.9 mg/kg and a second dose of 6.5 mg/kg should be given six hours after the first dose, a third dose of 6.5 mg/kg 18 hours later. the second dose and a fourth dose of 6.5 mg/kg, 24 hours after the third dose.
The excitement over the potential of the hydroxychloroquine udo combination began with a small French study of people with the new coronavirus. In these patients, the blood load of SARS-CoV-2, the virus responsible for COVID-19, in their blood dropped after receiving the drugs, although their clinical symptoms did not change much.
In another study of nearly 100 patients in China, doctors also reported some success in using the dual drugs to reduce viral load in patients.
There is not much evidence on how hydroxychloroquine or azithromycin work against a coronavirus like SARS-CoV-2. The studies from China and France were not randomized clinical trials — the gold standard in medical research, in which people with similar characteristics are randomly assigned to receive the drug or a placebo.
Instead, the data came from case reports, meaning the researchers weren’t able to fully explain factors like previous health history that could confound and skew their answer.
Who should not take hydroxychloroquine:
Hydroxychloroquine should not be used by people with hypersensitivity to any of the components present in the formula, with pre-existing retinopathies or who are under 6 years of age.
Hydroxychloroquine side effects :
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The most common side effects that can occur with the use of this medication are anorexia, headache, vision disturbances, abdominal pain, nausea, diarrhea, vomiting, rash and itchy skin .