PLAQUENIL Reviews (HYDROXYCHLOROQUINE SULFATE)

Average Rating: 3.2 (667 Ratings)

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 Type: Rx Drug

  

PLAQUENIL  (HYDROXYCHLOROQUINE SULFATE):  Hydroxychloroquine is used to prevent or treat malaria infections caused by mosquito bites. It does not work against certain types of malaria (chloroquine-resistant). The United States Center for Disease Control provides updated guidelines and travel recommendations for the prevention and treatment of malaria in different parts of the world. Discuss the most recent information with your doctor before traveling to areas where malaria occurs. This medication is also used, usually with other medications, to treat certain auto-immune diseases (lupus, rheumatoid arthritis) when other medications have not worked or cannot be used. It belongs to a class of medications known as disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs). It can reduce skin problems in lupus and prevent swelling/pain in arthritis, though it is not known exactly how the drug works.    (Sources: U.S. Centers for Medicare Services, FDA)

  

Results are sorted by Date added.

Key to Ratings: 1=LOW (I would not recommend taking this medicine.)
5=HIGH (this medicine cured me or helped me a great deal.)

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More on PLAQUENIL: Reviews Summary  |  Drug Safety Information

RATING  REASONSIDE EFFECTS FOR PLAQUENILCOMMENTSSEXAGEDURATION/
DOSAGE
DATE ADDED
 
 5  systemic lupus & rheumatoid arthrit Initially some nausea and dizziness but now have little or no side effects. Arthritic pain in morning (stiffness) has subsided and energy levels are increasing with near normal levels of physical activity being undertakin. Eyes checked and all is well. Very happy with progress. Only had one flare and subsided fairly quickly F 45 6 months
30mg 2X day
5/17/2011
 2  RA Rash on neck began on day 8. Increased nerve pain (I have idiopathic neuropathy). Anxiety seems to increase daily which causes me to eat and have trouble getting to sleep. I'm wondering if it will continue to increase or level off. Increased gassiness and harder stools. I have several things going on so it's hard to isolate what causes what, but these are changes since beginning the generic Plaquenil. So far no positive outcomes. I am on the generic version. I already inject 10 cc Methotrexate for RA, which worked well for years but this year I was experiencing problems, which is why the Plaquenil was added. F 54 12 days
200 mg 2X day
5/9/2011
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 1  Sjogren's syndrome loss of appetite, depression I still get pain and fatigue while on plaquenil, some days aren't too bad but the drug is dangerous. I lost about 20 pounds since I started on it. I'm depressed, anxious and angry and wish I could just die. F 58 8 months
400mg 1X day
5/7/2011
 1  erosive arthritis Started taking plaquenil on March 28 after seeing the eye doctor. just took once a day...instead of twice. because was getting heartburn at night from it. on Friday, April 23, almost a month later....I noticed my skin was bumpy. on Saturday my torso was covered with small red spots. my arm was covered was raised red patches. Sunday I did not take the medicine. rash is getting worse and itchy. The red patches are still bad. Will call the doctor tomorrow. Monday. still itchy, bumps red. Called the doctor, they did not return my call. Tuesday not as itchy, still red, but bumps not as prounounced. still blotchy red on my front torso. Went to the pharmacist at cvs, he told me that they have not had problems with plaquenil, and that if the rash was from plaquenil i would have had the rash immediately, not 4 weeks later. I wanted to tell him he he was clueless. Wednesday, still blotches on my torso, top of my arms seems to be not as inflamed. upper back part of my arms s Why don't doctors and pharmacists ever believe you ? Thank God for the internet and real people who share their real experiences on it! I now see why some people go for all natural solutions. I am getting disgusted with doctors and their lack of belief that a medicine could have a side effect. F 54
200mg 1X day
4/27/2011
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 5  Hair loss related to lupus For first couple of weeks had stomach pain upon taking pills if not with food; also experienced increased gas and stomach issues and vivid dreams. After a few weeks these symptoms went away. I have had great results with Plaquenil. Before I went on it, my hair was falling out dramatically from the roots. I couldn't touch my hair without coming away with a bunch. This started slowly 8 months ago but accelerated rapidly in the 3 months before I was diagnosed with lupus and started the medication. I was told that the Plaquenil would take 2 months to have any effect and I was not optimistic at first. But around the 7 week mark, I became cautiously optimistic when my hair stopped falling out heavily in the shower and seemed to lessen its shedding upon combing and throughout the day. Around the 9th week, my hair loss had completely stopped. Now, I can see that my hair is definitely growing back. It's like a miracle and I just pray that the medicine does not stop working. My doctor plans to reduce the dose at next appointment to a maintenance dose of 200 mg/day. Hopefully, I will continue to get the same results. F 40 3 months
200 mg 2X day
4/25/2011
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 4  Rheumatoid Arthritis Noticed a few months agao my hair was lightening, noticed yesterday that the back of my hair is starting to get wavy as well. So far only hair changes. Some of the other side effects I noticed in the beginning were minor and leveled out F 30 1 years
250mg 2X day
4/25/2011
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 4  RA Possibly altering my hormones since I've had some breakthrough bleeding and increased acne Used to take 1000mg naprosyn daily, but now I've cut that in half. The plaquenil took about 3 months to kick in, but my aches, swelling and pain are much better. Not perfect yet, but my rheumatologist said I could still expect to see improvement for up to 6 months. F 29 3 months
200 2X day
4/14/2011
 5  SLE Upset stomach if not taken with food This medication took forever, but once it built up in my system it was as though I didn't have systematic lupus. I have the flares really bad (blisters in mouth & hands, hip, wrist, hands, etc joint pain, extreme fatigue) if I miss my doses, but its been wonderful. I thought I would never get off the prednisone at first. F 25 1.5 years
200 2X day
4/1/2011
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 2  sjogrens Horrible itching, followed by rash/hives on upper body. Discontinued use of generic Plaquenil. Can anyone with a similar experience tell me if they tried any other drug to relieve the joint pain/fatigue associated with Sjogrens? Inti-inflammatories really no not help at all Would not recommend this drug to anyone who is drug sensitive F 48 10 days
200mg 2X day
3/29/2011
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 3  RA severe anxiety issues My fingers and hands felt 100% better, but every evening I felt chest pressure and breathing issues and my husband felt I was having anxiety issues. This is very out of the ordinary for me. I am going back to the Doctor tomorrow to discuss this but I am going to stop taking it until I can get a better handle on this. F 44 2 months
200 2X day
3/27/2011
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 5  Osteoarthritis I haven't noticed any side effects of Plaquenil. Plaquenil has done a terrific job of drastically reducing osteoarthritis pain in my hands. Generally, I only have finger/wrist joint pain now when my hands are exposed to cold temperatures. Sadly, it doesn't seem to be effective for my spinal osteoarthritis pain. I highly recommend it for finger/wrist osteoarthritis pain. Patients need to be careful about watching for vision changes while taking Plaquenil. Be sure to get your eyes check annually. Also be certain to tell your optometrist/opthamologist that you are taking Plaquenil, so they can watch for vision changes. I have not had vision problems...just mention this as a precaution to other patients. F 48 8 months
400mg 1X day
3/25/2011
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 4  UCTD It took about 3 months before I saw real improvement but unless I am having a "flare" I feel great most of the time. The first thing I noticed was that I was less stiff in the morning. Then I gradually saw improvement in my energy levels and my all around well-being. I do see an optometrist every 6 months to check for vision changes. So far all is well. I am grateful that the drug is extremely affordable and I have not had any real side effects. My rheumatologist explained that this is something I will have to take for the rest of my life. I also take Levothyroxin for my Hashimoto's Thyroiditis and completed a round of prescription Viyamin D after initial diagnosis. This is my second flare in 2 months. My doctor prescribes a two week dose of Prednisone and that seems to help. Since I am newly diagnosed I appreciate everyone's comments and suggestions. It is very frustrating when others just don't/can't understand how horrible you can feel. F 47 10 months
200 MG 2X day
3/24/2011
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 3  Rhuematoid Arthristis Only have minor stomach cramping if I do not eat within a short time after taking this. Other than that, do not seem to have any other negative side effects so far. Just a few days ago I started being able to tell that I didn't ache as much in the mornings. My Rhuemetologist did advise that it may take up to 8 weeks for postive effects to be seen, so I'm happy that I'm seeing some positive results as early as 3 weeks. Hope there's more to come as time passes. Seem to have more energy too, so that's a definite welcome change. F 45 1 months
200 MG 2X day
3/15/2011
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 4  Psoriatic Arthritis, Lichen Planus Nausea, Diarrhea I have always had a sensitive digestive system, but definitely worse when starting the plaquenil. The side effects after 9 months have nearly diminished now, and I have tremendous relief from the lichen planus and my psoriatic arthritis as greatly improved but far from perfect. My rheumatologist has now added methotrexate... F 38 9 months
400 mg 1X day
3/13/2011
 3  Osteoarthritis This drug *did* help with my joint pain, diagnosed with severe osteoarthritis as result of Ehler Danlos. Rheum suspects additional autoimmune disease, but tested neg for Lupus. Initial gastrointestinal issues, vomiting, nausea. Like morning sickness all the time. Was on 400mg day at that point. VIVID, epic length dreams. Exacerbation of OCD that was previously under control. Dosage stepped down to 200mg and moved from PM to AM to counteract dreams and OCD flares at night preventing sleep. AM dosage caused massive brain fog. As mother and full time psychology student this prevented me from performing to standard both academically and as a human. Last four weeks have been dealing with constant, overwhelming anxiety, huge upswing in OCD symptoms, and worsening depression with suicidal ideation, lack of focus and ability to stay on task. Having gone off the drug for only two days, I can report that I slept for a full five hours last night (miraculous!), my OCD symptoms have stepped back down, and I'm looking at my behavior of only last week in disbelief. I'm not ruling this drug out yet, but may need to combine it with an SSRI and strict monitoring. Would STRONGLY recommend that patients with anxiety disorders do not take this drug without discussion with a Psychiatrist first. Am much more cheerful today, despite the fact that I'm in a lot of pain. (Psychosomatic? Seems unlikely the drug has cleared enough yet to cause remission of psychiatric symptoms and reoccurrance of physical. But I'll take it - it's like the sun came out!) F 40 120 days
200mg 1X day
3/1/2011
Email
 4  RA Took Plaquenil for two months for persistent rheumotoid arthritis, 200 mg 2 X day. It appeared to be working, I noticed a difference, much less swelling in hands, less itching, more energy, less aches & pains. I was able to decrease Prednisone to 5mg a day. I became concerned after reading about sudden eye problems due to Plaquenil so I stopped taking it. Now three weeks later I am again so sore, so stiff, everything hurts & is swollen, despite going back up to 25 mg Prednisone/daily. I decided to re-start taking Plaquenil today. Will update here in 2 months or so to say how I'm doing. F 53 2 months
200 mg 2X day
2/13/2011
 4  Non Specific Imune Disorder Stomach upset, very grumbly all the time, which results in diarrhea with one hour of taking, improved vision (my eyes were always irritated before), weightloss 2 kg so far, I am keeping a close eye on this. All of my Erathema Multiforme outbreaks have stopped, my eyes are not irritated, my joints dont ache and my triceps have stopped hurting all the time. I feel I have more energy and I actually feel well for the first time in a few years. F 47 3 weeks
2X day
2/6/2011
 4   taken with Leflunomide this was beginning to work well, but then had to stop due to blurred vision, sight changes and currently diagnosed with lattice vitreous detachment. Awaiting permission to restart but not hopeful.......no idea what else I can have to control RA! Worked really well IN CONJUNCTION with Leflunomide but was ineffective on its own some years ago M 60 2 months
200mg 1X day
2/4/2011
 1  RA skin rashes; also liver poison together with methotrexate. Note - if you send me a question leave your e-mail address or I cannot answer. I am now off all drugs and found a cure in vitamins that you can read about at Dr Saul's website doctoryourself.com and his book Fire Your Doctor. Also omega 3 fatty acids (concentrated like Hemp shells)can benefit Lupus and vitamin C (esp. crystals, e.g. 1/2 teaspoon 3-5X a day) for Lyme, Synovitis etc inflamations M 55 30 days
200mg 1X day
2/2/2011
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 4  uctd/lupus Plaquenil was starting to help with my joint pain. Unfortunatly I developed a rash, hives and difficulty swallowing. I had to stop taking it. I was taking the generic brand. Within a few days of stopping the meds my knees once again felt like they were hit with a sledge hammer. :( Hoping I might be able to take the name brand. F 40 1 months
200 2X day
1/27/2011
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