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Injured by Lariam?

Lariam (Generic: Mefloquine hydrochloride) has been linked to serious psychiatric side effects including suicide. Lariam is a popular malaria prevention drug prescribed to thousands of U.S. travelers and military personnel.

Roche, the manufacturer of Lariam, sent notices to doctors and other health-care professionals warning of the risk of suicide. The warnings come after new questions were raised about Lariam when army investigators said that they would examine whether the drug was one factor in a series of widely publicized murders and suicides by soldiers in Fort Bragg, North Carolina.

Roche changed the drug's label and official product information to acknowledge that "rare cases of suicidal ideation and suicide have been reported." Now it plans to publicize the move by sending written notices to thousands of doctors around the U.S. "If symptoms of acute anxiety, depression and confusion occur," the new label says, they could lead "to a more serious event." In such cases, patients should quit the drug and take another malaria medicine.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends Lariam as the drug standard in 79 countries where malaria is resistant to other drugs. Developed by the U.S. army and later licensed to Roche, the drug was first tested and used primarily among the military. But it has grown popular with many U.S. tourists travelling to increasingly trendy Third World destinations, as well as with Peace Corps volunteers and aid workers. Since its introduction in 1985, Lariam has been prescribed to an estimated 25 million people world-wide.

If you or a loved one took Lariam and suffered side effects, please fill out the form at the right for a free case evaluation by a qualified drug side effects attorney.