Malarone is a medication used to treat a parasitic disease known as malaria. A mosquito carries this infectious disease. According to Drugs.com, Malarone is a combination of the drugs atovaquone and proguanil. Both these drugs work together to stop parasitic growth in your red blood cells. You will take one tablet of Malarone every day but its dosage depends on your body weight.
Common Side Effects
Malarone's common side effects include dizziness, itching, weakness, a cough and a headache. In a study of adults taking Malarone for malaria treatment, the National Library of Medicine says that 17 percent developed stomach pain, 10 percent developed a headache, 8 percent developed weakness and 5 percent developed dizziness. Malorone's common side effects are not life-threatening and a doctor can lower the Malarone dose to reduce common side effects.
Serious Side Effects
Malarone can cause nausea, fever, a poor appetite and uncontrolled and frequent bouts of diarrhea and vomiting. People lose plenty of body fluid when this happens and might become very dehydrated and even hypokalemic (low potassium levels). Dehydration becomes hazardous when people hardly urinate. Urination contains waste products of the blood and without this, people have a buildup of blood urea nitrogen (made in the liver and supposed to be excreted in urine) in the blood. Acute renal failure can result. Major symptoms of hypokalemia include constipation and muscular pain. Malarone can also cause a severe skin rash, easy bleeding or bruising, mouth sores and yellowing of skin (jaundice). Easy bleeding and bruising occurs when people have a reduced number of platelets circulating in their blood vessels. Without them, the blood cannot clot. Jaundice is a sign of liver damage.
Additional Concerns
People shouldn't use Malarone if you are hypersensitive to atovaquone or proguanil. Difficulty breathing, hives and trouble breathing are manifestations of an allergic reaction to Malorone. Drugs.com says that a dose adjustment of Malarone may be necessary if someone has kidney or liver disease or uncontrolled vomiting and diarrhea. Also, pregnancy increases the chance of death if the woman has malaria. Malarone is also excreted into breast milk, so women should tell their physicians if they are pregnant or breastfeeding.
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