Quinine is a prescription medication used as an antimalarial drug, according to the National Institutes of Health. Malaria is an infectious disease of the bloodstream caused by a one-celled parasite known as plasmodium. The parasite is transferred from one person to the next by way of mosquitoes. When a person is bitten by an infected mosquito, the pathogen is injected directly into the bloodstream. Quinine does nothing to prevent malaria; it's only effective in treating the disease.
Function
The reason quinine cannot prevent malaria is the way this antimalarial drug works within the bloodstream. Quinine seeks out the pathogen and kills the organism causing the disease, explains the National Institutes of Health. How the medication does this is still unclear, but it could have something to do with its effect on the DNA of the organism. It may also cause an elevation in the pH of the pathogen, affecting the acidity of its cellular biology. Without the pathogen in the blood, the drug has nothing to interact with and passes through your system.
Pathogens
Quinine is most commonly used to treat malaria caused by P. falciparum, one of the four strains of plasmodium responsible for malaria, notes the Mayo Clinic. However, it may also be used to treat malaria linked to another strain of plasmodium known as P. vivax, according to information provided by the Journal of Clinical Investigation, as well as both P. malariae and P. ovale. In these situations, quinine may be used in conjunction with another antimalarial medication.
Dosage
The Mayo Clinic explains that quinine is typically taken in 600 to 650 mg doses every eight hours, or three times a day. The length of time the medication is taken depends on the individual, but it ranges anywhere between three and seven days, asserts the National Institutes of Health. It's recommended that you take the drug with food at about the same time every day, until the prescription runs out.
Symptoms
As they take quinine, most malaria victims see an improvement in their condition in one to two days. Chills, fever, sweating, discomfort, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and headache are all symptoms of the disease, and should begin to subside within this time. However, this doesn't mean you should cease taking the prescription. Using less of the dosage than prescribed could result in a second episode of malaria. If there's no improvement in the condition after the prescription period, a consultation with a doctor is necessary.
Significance
Quinine is also proven to be effective on babesiosis, a rare malaria-like disease caused by a parasite found in ticks. The drug also seeks out the pathogen and kills the organism causing this disease.
Warning
Side effects of quinine include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and abdominal cramping, warns the Mayo Clinic. People have also experienced cold sweats, drowsiness, headaches, confusion, blurred vision, anxiety, slurred speech, sore throat, restlessness and even convulsions or coma after its use, though these reactions are not as common.
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