Primaquine Prophylaxis against Malaria
Authors: D. Gray Heppner
Journal: Annals of Internal Medicine (1999)

Letters16 March 1999Primaquine Prophylaxis against MalariaD. Gray Heppner Jr., MD, Robert A. Gasser Jr., MD, and Kent E. Kester, MDD. Gray Heppner Jr., MDWalter Reed Army Institute of Research; Washington, DC 20307 (Heppner)Walter Reed Army Institute of Research; Washington, DC 20307 (Gasser)Walter Reed Army Institute of Research; Washington, DC 20307 (Kester)Search for more papers by this author, Robert A. Gasser Jr., MDWalter Reed Army Institute of Research; Washington, DC 20307 (Heppner)Walter Reed Army Institute of Research; Washington, DC 20307 (Gasser)Walter Reed Army Institute of Research; Washington, DC 20307 (Kester)Search for more papers by this author, and Kent E. Kester, MDWalter Reed Army Institute of Research; Washington, DC 20307 (Heppner)Walter Reed Army Institute of Research; Washington, DC 20307 (Gasser)Walter Reed Army Institute of Research; Washington, DC 20307 (Kester)Search for more papers by this authorAuthor, Article, and Disclosure Informationhttps://doi.org/10.7326/0003-4819-130-6-199903160-00009 SectionsAboutFull TextPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail TO THE EDITOR:Malaria prophylaxis for travelers should be safe and should protect against Plasmodium falciparum and P. vivax, the two most prevalent species. In this light, we discuss Soto and colleagues' report of primaquine prophylaxis against malaria (1).First, the importance of excluding G6PD deficiency before primaquine prophylaxis cannot be overstated. G6PD deficiency, originally described as “primaquine sensitivity,” is characterized by hemolysis that is clinically apparent 6 to 72 hours after exposure to oxidant drugs such as primaquine. African-American persons are commonly G6PD deficient, as demonstrated by Hockwald and colleagues (2), who administered primaquine, 30 mg/d, for 14 days ...References1. Soto J, Toledo J, Rodriquez M, Sanchez J, Herrera R, Padilla J, et al . Primaquine prophylaxis against malaria in nonimmune Colombian soldiers: efficacy and toxicity. A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. Ann Intern Med. 1998;129:241-4. LinkGoogle Scholar2. Hockwald RS, Arnold J, Clayman CB, Alving AS. Toxicity of primaquine in Negroes. JAMA. 1952;149:1568-70. CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar3. Fryauff DJ, Baird JK, Basri H, Sumawinata I, Purnomo , Richie TL, et al . Randomised placebo-controlled trial of primaquine for prophylaxis of falciparum and vivax malaria. Lancet. 1995;346:1190-3. CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar4. Ohrt C, Richie TL, Widjaja H, Shanks GD, Fitriadi J, Fryauff DJ, et al . Mefloquine compared with doxycycline for the prophylaxis of malaria in Indonesian soldiers. A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. Ann Intern Med. 1997;126:963-72. LinkGoogle Scholar5. Nosten F, ter Kuile F, Maelankiri L, Chongsuphajaisiddhi T, Nopdonrattakoon L, Tangitchot S, et al . Mefloquine prophylaxis prevents malaria during pregnancy: a double blind, placebo-controlled study. J Infect Dis. 1994;169:595-603. CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar Author, Article, and Disclosure InformationAffiliations: Walter Reed Army Institute of Research; Washington, DC 20307 (Heppner)Walter Reed Army Institute of Research; Washington, DC 20307 (Gasser)Walter Reed Army Institute of Research; Washington, DC 20307 (Kester) PreviousarticleNextarticle Advertisement FiguresReferencesRelatedDetailsSee AlsoPrimaquine Prophylaxis against Malaria in Nonimmune Colombian Soldiers: Efficacy and Toxicity: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Trial Jaime Soto , Julia Toledo , Maria Rodriquez , Jorge Sanchez , Ricardo Herrera , Julio Padilla , and Jonathan Berman Primaquine Prophylaxis against Malaria Michele Barry Primaquine Prophylaxis against Malaria Jaime Soto and Jonathan Berman Metrics Cited byAntimalarial AgentsDrugs for malaria 16 March 1999Volume 130, Issue 6Page: 536KeywordsDoxycyclineHemoglobinMalariaMefloquineMultidrug resistancePlasmodium falciparumPregnancyPrimaquineProphylaxisProspective studies ePublished: 15 August 2000 Issue Published: 16 March 1999 Copyright & PermissionsCopyright © 1999 by American College of Physicians. All Rights Reserved.PDF downloadLoading ...