Quinine headaches

The use of quinine can cause cinchonism at full therapeutic doses. Cinchonism is a group of symptoms associated with quinine, including tinnitus, dizziness, headache, gastrointestinal disturbances, and visual disturbances. These symptoms usually disappear when the dosage is reduced. Other adverse reactions include hematologic changes, vertigo, and skin rash. 

Adverse Effects. Quinine is associated with many adverse effects involving several primary organ systems. This drug may produce disturbances in the CNS (headache, visual disturbances, ringing in the ears), gastrointestinal system (nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain), and cardiovascular system (cardiac arrhythmias). Problems with hypersensitivity, blood disorders, liver dysfunction, and hypoglycemia may also occur in some individuals. 

Quinine is a naturally occurring alkaloid obtained from Cinchona bark, with a mechanism of action similar to that of chloroquine. Quinine is very useful in treating chloroquine-resistant Plasmodium falciparum. In toxic doses, it may cause cinchonism characterized by tinnitus, headache, nausea, and visual disturbances. 

AMANTADINE 1. ANTIMALARIALS- quinine 2. ANTIPARKINSON S DRUGS -pramipexole t side-effects 1 renal excretion Monitor closely for confusion, disorientation, headache, dizziness and nausea... 

A review of certain chemicals is essential. Ethylene glycol is an antifreeze used for gasoline engines and may produce somnolence, imreactive pupils, disc swelling, and kidney failure. Systemic lead poisoning produces headaches, coma, cranial nerve palsies, and papilledema. Wood alcohol, or methanol, may produce severe toxic neuropathy and disc edema. Drugs known to produce toxic optic neuropathy include amiodarone (an antiar-rhythmic), quinine, aminoquinolines, ibuprofen, ethambutol, isoniazid, and chloramphenicol. 

Although the therapeutic benefits of the mercurials are by today s standards doubtful, and more likely outright harmful, quinine really is effective against malaria. In order to understand quinine, one must understand malaria. Malaria is a tropical and subtropical disease transferred to humans from the bite of the Anopheles mosquito, which carries the Plasmodium protozoa. Once in the bloodstream these parasites cause intermittent or remittent fevers, violent chills, headache, vomiting, and in severe cases coma and death. More often the malaria attacks are so debihtating that the sufferer succumbs to some secondary... 

Of course, fever and its prevention was not quinine s only use. Charles Beneulyn Johnson mixed up whisky and quinine and administered the concoction to his Illinois comrades for exhaustion. 65 Billings observed that the proverbial prescription of the average army surgeon was quinine, whether for stomach or bowels, headache or toothache, for a cough or for lameness, rheumatism or fever and... 

Adverse effects include tinnitus, diminished auditory acuity, headache, blurred vision, nausea and diarrhoea (common to quinine, quinidine, salicylates and called cinchonism). Idiosyncratic reactions include pruritus, urticaria and rashes. H)qjogly-caemia may be significant when quinine is given by i.v. infusion and supplementary glucose may be required. 

Both drugs have similar side effects of nausea, vomiting, dizziness, blurring of vision and headache, although those of quinine can be more severe. 

Dizziness headache vomiting diarrhea yellow staining of skin toxic psychosis insomnia bizarre dreams blood dyscrasias urticaria blue and black nail pigmentation psoriasis-like rash acute hepatic necrosis convulsions severe exfoliative dermatitis ocular effects similar to those caused by chloroquine Quinine Dihydrochloride and Sulfate... 

Quinine is contraindicated in patients with glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G-6-PD) deficiency, optic neuritis, tinnitus, or a history of blackwater fever and thrombocytopenia purpura. The symptoms of overdosage are tinnitus, dizziness, skin rash, and GI disturbance (intestinal cramping). With higher doses, cardiovascular and CNS effects may occur, including headache, fever, vomiting, apprehension, confusion, and convulsions. 

Toxicity Mefloquine is less toxic than quinine its adverse effects include gastrointestinal distress, skin rash, headache, and dizziness. At high doses, mefloquine may cause neurologic symptoms and seizures. 

Adverse effects. Adverse effects of quinine include abdominal pain, nausea, tinnitus, headache, blindne.ss and hypersen.siiiviiy reactions, icHu( uinc may cause neuropsychiatric reactions and Matarone or doxycycline are increasingly being used to provide prophylaxis in areas of chioroquinc-resistant P. falcipanim,... 

Nevertheless, be aware that amantadine toxicity (e.g. headache, nausea, or dizziness) could possibly result from the concurrent use of quinine or qui-nidine. 

Symptoms of "cinchonism," due to overdose of the compound quinine, include headache, nausea, distributed vision, tinnitus, delirium, abdominal pain, and diarrhea. Extreme reactions including blindness, deafness, convulsions, paralysis, collapse, and even death may occur in hypersensitive individuals (Gilman et al. 1985 Martindale and Reynolds 1996 Remington and Wood 1918). 

Quinine (Fig. 9) is probably the oldest effective therapeutic agent for the prophylaxis and therapy of Plasmodium infections and, although now largely superseded for routine use, it is of considerable value in the treatment of chloroquine-resistant P. falciparum, for which it is used in combination with other antimalarials. The main side effects of quinine therapy comprise a syndrome of classical cinchonism, i.e., tinnitus, vision defects, nausea, headache and gastrointestinal effects, but im-munologically the much rarer complication, drug-induced thrombocytopenia is of more interest. 

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