Artesunate/mefloquine Artesunate/mefloquine Artesunate/mefloquine is a medication used to treat malaria. It is a fixed dose combination of artesunate and mefloquine. Specifically it is recommended to treat uncomplicated falciparum malaria. It is taken by mouth. Side effects are similar to the medications being used separately. Use is recommended as it decreases the possibility of either medications being used alone. Dose forms appropriate for children are also available. Artesunate/mefloquine came into commercial use in 2008. It is on the World Health Organization's List of Essential Medicines, the most effective and safe medicines needed in a health system. It is approved for medical use
Mefloquine of the users reported severe events requiring medical attention, vs 1.2% in the atovaquone-proguanil arm. The brand name drug, Lariam, is manufactured by the Swiss company Hoffmann–La Roche. In August 2009, Roche stopped marketing Lariam in the United States. In June 2010, the first case report appeared of a progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy being successfully treated with mefloquine. Mefloquine can also act against the JC virus. Administration of mefloquine seemed to eliminate the virus from the patient's body and prevented further neurological deterioration. WRAIR has published several papers outlining ongoing efforts at that institution to make mefloquine safer by producing a