Reports warn patients of side effects of Fansidar

PATIENTS taking the anti-malarial drug, Fansidar, should be warned of its side effects, a report on the internet site called drugs.com said.
According to the reports, Fansidar (sulfadoxine pyrimethamine) has been discontinued in the United Kingdom last year due to reported cases of severe side effects among its consumers.
The report says the side effects include headache, itching or skin rash, difficulty in sleeping, pain in muscles, seizures, nausea and vomiting, shortness of breath and cough.
Fansidar has been declared “useless” in treating patients with malaria parasites in Papua New Guinea, according to preliminary findings presented at the medical symposium in Port Moresby.
The medicine is used for treating and preventing malaria parasite especially plasmodium falciparum, when other medicines like chloroquine are not effective.
It is currently used to treat patients especially children with malaria at hospitals and clinics.
However, it has been reported that many Papua New Guineans, who were treated for malaria, have somehow developed resistance to Fansidar.
The paper presented by Celine Barnabas of PNG Institute of Medical Research stated that there was high resistance toward fansidar due to mutations in mosquito species in the country.