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  Sjogrens When I first started I had lots of gas and digestive issues but taking it with a fatty food really helps. Got rid of my fatigue and swollen achy fingers. Really a wonder drug for me. I make sure to get my eyes checked every 6 months and use the amsler grid in between eye appointments F 56 3 years
200 2X day
7/21/2010
 3  Undiff. Conn. Tissue Disorder - SLE It's hard to say since I've had so many ailments since before and after I was diagnosed, and I feel that my doctors did not correctly assess any of them. I was already having improperly diagnosed digestive problems, which to my thinking may have been the first symptoms of UCTD/lupus. My rheumatologist has not confirmed it, but 7 years later, I am now suffering gastroparesis, and my gastro-enterologist has finally confirmed that it is likely a symptom of my autoimmune disease. The only side effect I can directly attribute to the plaquenil is random bruising of my skin. I've always bruised easily, but this was w/o cause. If there were bloating, headache, memory or painful side effects, they were just in addition to the symptoms I was already having. At the time I started plaquenil, I was in so much pain and unable to function that I was concurrently started on 15 mg of prednisone. I never got below 8 mg. of prednisone w/o my joints/nerves flaring up, so I've never relied primarily on pla All I can say is that w/ the combined prednisone and plaquenil... my joints lost their stiffness... the pain I do experience is intermittent and tolerable. I manage my pain w/ ibuprofen and vicodin as needed... usually not on a daily basis, sometimes 3 times daily for the ibuprofen. I also soon after my diagnosis began using a low dose of pamelor (an anti-depressant found to be helpful for migraines) nightly, which may have contradicted any depression symptoms, though the dr. told me that the dose i was on was not sufficient to treat clinical depression. My main concern at this point is treating the gastroparesis now that it's finally been diagnosed. I think at this point, my dose of plaquenil is as high as I can go w/o risking toxicity that may affect my eyes or something else, so it might be time to try a new medication... but i prefer not to go on anything stronger as I've done so well with this one. I don't want to experience more severe side effects. F 30 7 years
300-450 1X day
7/20/2010
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 3  lupus dizzy,sicky,floater in left eye, white bloobs of light,headache, pins n needles,itching of stomach,trapped wind,very very very strange dreams to the extent where i believe im not even dreaming,memory loss,mood swings,pain in ribs and chest bone,ringing in ears and rummbleing in stomach!!! although these side effects may sound bad (and believe me thier not good) i am alot better in myself. The stiffness i was having isn't as bad, and the aches and pains are subsideing. I do still have alot of problems and i am still very fatiuged but I feel 80% better. I have 3 children and work full time at a Special Needs School, maybe alot of my problems are down to my life style? Just wish the deppression would subside, maybe if my sleep patern alterd I mite be more refreshed? F 31 2 months
200 2X day
7/18/2010
 1  Autoimmune disease After taking Plaquenil (hydroxychloroquine) for several months I noticed I was in a severe depression. I suffer from depression off and on but had never felt this bad. I read that depression/mood changes is a possible side effect so I went off the plaquenil to see how I'd feel. Within about a week I was already noticing a difference. Now it's been a month since I went off and I feel a thousand times better. That drug is bad news. Don't take it if you don't need to. F 36 9 months
2X day
7/17/2010
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 3  Sjogren's Eye pain. Change in eyesight. Now developing painful red bumps on back of tongue and on sides of tongue. Dr. said to take 400 mg a day. I started myself at 50 mg because I'm drug senstive. Now I'm at 150 mg per day and the tongue has broken out. No change in saliva. Hand has stopped burning. Legs still numbish. Fatique is still there but a bit less. I really want this to work and am trying hard. There aren't many drugs to choose from when you are drug sensitive and have Sjogrens. F 48 13 days
50 mg 3X day
7/15/2010
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 3  SLE None first three weeks. Then bloating and gas were experienced. Had to cut the pill in halves and take throughout the day to try to solve the bloating. I have to take it with food otherwise I feel very sick. I've lost weight but can't complain :) Overall, I haven't noticed a difference. I am still on a low dose of prednisone (5mg) so I still experience fatigue and joint stiffness. I don't want to go up higher on prednisone, so I dont' complain much at this point. I am feeling better compared to months prior. F 22 1.5 months
200 mg 2X day
6/23/2010
 5  Lupus SLE Loss of hair, dizziness, and stomach aches I have only been on this medicine for two years now and it has really helped out with my lupus conditions. But right in the beginning it thinned out my hair a ton which stinks but it's better then my liver enzymes elevating!! When I forget to take it one day and then take my regular dosage the next day it gives me a really bad stomach ache and dizziness to the point of fainting. But that's only occassionaly when I forget it. All in all though it really has relieved the stress of my lupus getting worse with little side effects. I rather not have to take a drug the rest of my life though:( F 15 2 years
200 2X day
6/17/2010
 2  Lyme Disease Headache (all the time!), nausea/anorexia, general stomach ickiness, dizziness. (Note: I started plaquenil simultaneously with zithromax; it may be that some side effects resulted from the latter. I think it's mostly the plaquenil.) Side effects began soon (within 24 hours) after I started taking it. I stopped taking it over a week ago, but the side effects still have not subsided. Due to stomach problems, I have to FORCE myself to eat, I can only choke down a bit of fruit anytime before 4 or 5 pm, when hunger simply wins out over stomach upset. Meanwhile, I have had a nonstop headache; it waxes and wanes, but sometimes is almost migrane-like in severity. I have continued working but not with my usual efficiency. IMPORTANT QUESTION: How long did it take side effects to end? I was surprised to find that this drug can take 1-2 months to be completely eliminated from the system -- does this mean that I could have side effects for that long? :-( I have stopped taking the zithromax, in case side effects are related to that drug; the zithromax takes a week to clear, so if I still have these problems in a week, it's caused by the plaquenil. I will update then. I am reluctant to rate this medicine because I did not take it for long enough to see if it would have helped (and lyme disease isn't one to respond immediately to antimicrobials, anyway). I'm giving it a 2 for side effects. Had I known more about the side effects, I still would have tried it anyway, because many people are able to take it without problems. F 36 5 days
200 2X day
6/12/2010
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 4  Rheumatoid Arthritis 20 pound weight loss( i am 5'6" and was 130 and am now 110, lack of appetite( obviously..), nightmares, random nausea and headaches While it has caused a few issues, the overall benefits have outweighed them and I have definitely had a lot less aching, swelling and fatigue. F 19 6 months
400 1X day
6/2/2010
 5  SLE I have had no side effects. It took a few months before I got the full benefit. I believe this medication gave me by life back. I have tried to go off a few times over the years but my symptoms always increase, ie. joint pain, mouth sores, sunburn/rashes, fatigue worsens. I no longer try to go off and my rheumatologist and I agree that I'll have my eyes checked regularly and stay on it as long as it works. F 49 15 years
200 2X day
5/16/2010
 2  Lupua initial itching/hot feeling of skin, horrible nausea on generic/much better on brand name med., ringing in ears, INSOMNIA: this is why I had to stop. Have tried 3 times now. I feel this medicine could help if it wasn't for the side effects. I only sleep 2-3 hours a night while on this. This apparently is not a common side effect but is definitely related to the medicine for me. F 30 3 months
200 2X day
5/9/2010
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 5   dizziness when first starting the medicine has made my Bechet's symptoms all but disappear. I love it! F 33 3 years
20 mg 2X day
4/21/2010
 2  UCTD noticed more headaches, but not too bothersome. had a huge allergic reaction on day 27 and by day 28 i went to urgent care at the advice of my rheum. to get steroid shot and a dose pack. now 24 hours later, i still have a nasty looking rash covering my lower arms and hands. i think this med has a lot of potential, but i wish i had been aware that it isn't all that unusual for an allergic reaction to happen after any length of time. i hadn't been on it long enough to notice a difference, but i had great hope that it would help. it is an older, much cheaper medication that has been proven to work well with these diseases. this isn't my first reaction to medication, but most definitely the worst. it just didn't work for me. back to square one! F 40 28 days
200 mg 2X day
4/21/2010
 1  Dermatomyositis I left the review below, this is a follow up on my condition: I withdrew myself from plaquenil n rushed to my derm who immediately put me in hospital for observation. By then I'm running a high fever, rash, swellings oh lips tongue and lymphnodes. My face is also pustulating. While the doctors were checking me, I heard them using the word "DRESS syndrome" a couple of time and I went to google it to find out that it is a severe reactions to drugs with High mortality rate of 10% with a high possibility of damaged organs e.g. Liver, kidney, lungs n hepatitis of 50%. I was give prednisone n the fever came down and I'm crossing my fingers n hoping to turn out well. I hope anyone who's considering plaquenil PLS research thoroughly and not end up like me...ask questions n make sure you're not allergic to sulphate or has history of dermatitis conditions, which will retrigger and bring out the worst. F 21 5 days
200 1X day
4/16/2010
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 1  rheumatoid arthritis After being told to have my retinas checks twice a year which I did and the retina tests supposedly coming back fine, I now have plaquenil retinopathy in BOTH eyes. This came on very sudden. I would like to know if anyone out there has ever filed a civil lawsuit because of this drug. F 45 15 years
400 1X day
4/15/2010
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 2  Skin conditions related to lupus I was prescribed it as I am diagnosed with auto-immune disease. I have skin conditions stemming from it since childhood. My mom took my off Plaquenil as a kid for a reason, but now I'm older, I decided to restart the course and this is my 5th day and the irony is that I am experiencing small blisters on my palms and sole, and a patch of rash on my back and arms. I don't know if I should continue. I would appreciate any sort of advises. F 21 5 days
200 1X day
4/13/2010
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 3  ra barely controllable itching arms, legs torso M 58 6 months
200mg 2X day
4/3/2010
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 1  Lupus? nausea, gas, mild acne, general moodiness side effects are mild, however after taking 400mg for 3 months, i started getting really bad stomach aches. went down to 200mg and stomach aches are mostly gone. medication itself has done nothing to take away my joint/muscle pains and fatigue. F 21 4 months
200 mg 1X day
3/31/2010
 1  Reumatoid Arthritis/Lupus 2 weeks after starting Plaquenil, had major muscle aching & muscle weekness, so much so that I had the doctors test me for Ross River Virus & Brahma Forest Virus, which came back negative. Thought it may have been the drugs, so went off them for 3 months, but muscle aches have continued, although not as severe. Re-started taking them again in January, but have also experienced severe muscle twitching, anxiety & depression. I had no relief from this medication whatsoever, only bad side effects. I am waiting for these drugs to leave my system & only hope they have not done long term damage. I would not recommend these drugs to anyone, given the serious side effects it offers, for exactly what in return? F 39 6 months
400mg 1X day
3/26/2010
 1  RA Ringing in my ears,gas,bloating,nausea,deeper depression than normal on one of those bad days you have. Also on methotrexate,steroids which still hasnt got it under control will have to try enbrel next. I had to take this drug for three months to make eligibility for the government enbrel sponsorship. I have suffered for seven years trying every dam drup they have out their only to end up toxic inside once my veins went all string like to which no specialist could tell me what it was. I went off all the drugs for a couple of years only to ruin my right knee and left foot which both need full reconstruction so I am preying that the enbrel will stop the crp and esr. F 41 3 months
30 1X day
3/16/2010
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