What does the drug Plaquenil do?
Hydroxychloroquine is used in the treatment of arthritis to help relieve inflammation, swelling, stiffness, and joint pain and also to help control the symptoms of lupus erythematosus (lupus; SLE). A common brand name for hydroxychloroquine is Plaquenil®.
What are side effects of Plaquenil?
Mild side effects that have been reported with Plaquenil include:
- nausea.
- vomiting.
- diarrhea*
- abdominal (belly) pain.
- dizziness.
- fatigue (low energy)
- nervousness or irritability.
- hair loss.
What are the negative side effects of hydroxychloroquine?
Hydroxychloroquine may cause side effects. Tell your doctor if any of these symptoms are severe or do not go away:
- headache.
- dizziness.
- loss of appetite.
- nausea.
- diarrhea.
- stomach pain.
- vomiting.
- rash.
Is plaquenil an anti inflammatory?
Conclusion: HCQ may exert simultaneous anti-inflammatory and antiviral effects in patients with HIV infection and inflammatory arthritis. If larger studies confirm this observation, it may be the drug of choice in this population of patients.
Is plaquenil a steroid?
Plaquenil is an antimalarial medication and prednisone is a glucocorticoid. Side effects of Plaquenil and prednisone that are similar include nausea, vomiting, or headache.
Do you gain weight on Plaquenil?
Weight changes Plaquenil suppresses appetite. Therefore, most people who experience body weight changes from taking Plaquenil experience weight loss. Some people taking Plaquenil may experience weight gain from fluid retention, but weight gain is generally not a common side effect of Plaquenil.
How common is hair loss with Plaquenil?
Hair loss is not a documented side effect of Plaquenil. If it does occur, it is so extremely rare that it is not documented in the literature. In fact, hydroxychloroquine is actually used to prevent hair loss from other medications.
Is plaquenil safer than methotrexate?
Safety variables at 6 month were within normal physiological ranges and did not differ in groups (p>0.05) indicating that both methotrexate and hydroxychloroquine were effective and safe to use in rheumatoid arthritis. The difference in the incidence of adverse effects, total or individual, was almost nil.
What can you not take with hydroxychloroquine?
Hydroxychloroquine should not be taken with other drugs that could cause heart arrhythmias (irregular heart rate or rhythm). Taking hydroxychloroquine with these drugs could cause dangerous arrhythmias….Drugs that affect heart rhythm
- amiodarone.
- chlorpromazine.
- clarithromycin.