On July 25, 19-year-old Cambridge student Alanna Cattelan died after falling from a plane in Madagascar. Testimony from those on board, including the pilot, led to speculation that Cattelan jumped out of the plane on purpose. Police in the region are investigating whether her "psychotic" symptoms were a side effect of anti-malarial drugs, The Guardian reported.
Cattelan's uncle told the Daily Mail that the student "fell ill after spending a few days there, and when she spoke to her mother on the phone two days before the accident, she spoke slurred and incoherently." He noted , the family believes Cattelan "had a severe reaction to certain medications," but added that they do not believe anti-malarial drugs were the culprit "because she took them during a trip to China last year without any side effects."
According to the Daily Telegraph , two antimalarial drugs - Doxycycline and mefloquine (also called Lariam)— It is believed to have been found in Cattelan's luggage. The potential presence of Lariam immediately raised concerns as the drug could cause a number of adverse side effects - Some of them can be serious.
"These include 'psychosis', a condition associated with paranoia, delusions, hallucinations, agitation, extreme anxiety and suicidal ideation," said Dr Claire Morrison, GP and medical consultant at MedExpress. "This condition is so serious that approximately one in 10,000 Larium users will require hospitalization."
Since Cattelan's death, several people have recounted their experiences with Lariam. One woman told the Daily Mail she hallucinated "the walls were melting", while a man recalled overcoming his "huge wave of paranoia" after taking the drug.
Rhiannon Davies took Lariam during a five-month trip to sub-Saharan Africa in 2004. She said the then 19-year-old was aware of the risks and was told of other options. "But I know doxycycline can cause sun sensitivity and sunburn (which I don't want), and malarone is the best option, but too expensive for me to be away for such a long time."
Davis remembers being "in tears many times and feeling so hopeless for no reason" after taking the drug. She also experienced hallucinations: "I remember sitting and thinking I was talking to someone and then he handed me something. I looked down at my hands and there was nothing there. Then I realized there was no one in front of me or anything. one."
"I decided I'd rather risk getting malaria than feel so different from myself," she added, so she stopped taking larimer and "felt better pretty quickly." The NHS says Larium is not recommended for people with mental health problems. But Davis, Cattelan and many others who report adverse side effects don't fall into that category.
The drug has long been controversial. It was developed to prevent hard-to-treat malaria and is often prescribed to military personnel. But according to The Independent , in 2015, the British Ministry of Defense was accused of "risking the mental health of soldiers" when about 1,000 British soldiers required psychiatric treatment after taking Lariam. Two years ago, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) issued a strengthened warning about prescribing Lariam.
Dr. Morrison said cisgender women may be at greater risk of side effects "because they tend to have a slower metabolism. This makes the concentration of any drug slightly higher than in men." But she added that men can also be affected .
It's unclear how many prescriptions for Lariam are issued to the public in the UK each year, but the drug is no longer available at online pharmacy Superdrug, the Daily Mail reported. Dr Morrison noted that "drugs should only be prescribed if there are no effective alternatives and the risk of malaria is substantial".
However, Lariam's relative cheapness may be a factor in its continued use, The Daily Telegraph reports. This drug only needs to be taken once a week; other antimalarial drugs require daily doses. If Lariam is prescribed, the NHS recommends you try it for three weeks before traveling to check if there are any side effects.
"This medication should be taken by mouth, not on an empty stomach," said pharmacist Shamir Patel, founder of Chemist 4 U. He said other side effects include "stomach pain, loss of appetite, headache, muscle pain, vomiting and, in more severe cases, ", taking Lariam may cause loss of coordination, numbness and tingling, vision changes, drowsiness, and persistent vomiting."
Extreme cases may result in "fainting and irregular heartbeats." Patel recommends seeking emergency medical help if you experience any of these serious side effects.
"I'm surprised, given all the evidence, that Larim is still being prescribed," Davis said. "There are a lot of stories like mine. I guess in a way I was lucky to attribute the way I was feeling to the drug and stop taking it before it got worse. But I can imagine what that felt like, but I can't imagine making the connection, thinking it's all in your own head.
"Even with warnings, when you're talking about affecting mental health, you can't always think rationally about the risks involved."
