Health Dictionary
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8-Aminoquinoline
Introduction
The 8-aminoquinoline family of drugs contains three members, primaquine, tafenoquine and pamaquine and are used in the treatment of malaria. They may be used to eradicate malaria hypnozoites from the liver and have both been used for malaria prophylaxis. The 8-aminoquinoline drugs must not be given to patients with G6PD deficiency, because they cause potentially fatal haemolysis in these patients. Pamaquine is no longer available anywhere, but primaquine is still used routinely worldwide as part of the treatment of Plasmodium vivax and Plasmodium ovale malaria. Tafenoquine is currently in Phase III clinical trials and is not yet available to prescribe.
References
- Sweeney AW, Blackburn CRB, KH Rieckmann. (2004). “Short report: The activity of pamaquine, an 8-aminoquinoline drug, against sporozoite-induced infections of Plasmodium vivax (New Guinea strains)”. Am J Trop Med Hyg. 71 (2): 187–189.