Malarone

What is Malarone?

Malarone is is a treatment widely used to prevent malaria. If you are travelling to a destination that is a high-risk area for malaria, you should take Malarone tablets before, during and after you come back from your trip.

It is a branded antimalarial medication that contains two active ingredients, atovaquone and proguanil. These ingredients prevent you from developing malaria from mosquito bites, which are very common in tropical countries. Mosquito bites can pass malaria straight into the bloodstream.

To buy Malarone, you must have been prescribed it by a doctor.

What is Malarone used to treat?

Malarone tablets are taken to prevent catching the tropical disease malaria when you travel to a destination that is designated a high risk area. They are also an effective treatment for malaria if you catch it while abroad.

Why is Malarone recommended to treat malaria?

Recent studies have shown that certain strains of malaria are becoming resistant to antimalarial medicines. Malarone has been found to be a vauable medicine for cases where an intolerance to other antimalarials has built up. 

Malarone has also been found to produce a minimal risk of side effects in people who take it. 

How effective is Malarone at preventing malaria?

Clinical studies have shown Malarone to be over 95% effective at preventing malaria. The study concluded that Malaria is a highly effective treatment against malaria infection when compared to other antimalarial drugs.

How does Malarone work?

Malarone’s two active ingredients, proguanil hydrochloride and atovaquone, work by stopping any malaria parasites that may have entered your blood or the liver from being able to reproduce and spread.

Who should not take Malarone? 

Malarone is an effective malaria prevention and treatment medicine, but it is not suitable for everyone to take.

Do not take Malarone tablets if you are allergic to atovaquone, proguanil hydrochloride or any of the other ingredients contained in these tablets.

Do not use Malarone to prevent malaria if you have severe kidney disease.

Speak to your doctor before taking Malarone if any of the following apply to you:

• You have severe kidney disease
• Your child weighs less than 11 kg and is being treated for malaria

Always read the patient information leaflet for full details.

Do I need a prescription to buy Malarone?

Yes, Malarone is a prescription-only medicine (POM), so you cannot buy it over the counter. If you are travelling to a destination that carries a risk of malaria, speak to your doctor, who will be able to prescribe this medication for you.

Can you buy Malarone online in the UK?

You can buy Malarone tablets online from Medicine Direct's online pharmacy after you have completed a confidential online consultation. As this is a prescription medicine, one of our certified doctors, pharmacists or prescribers will need to make sure that it is safe for you to take.

As with any medicine, you should only buy Malarone from licensed and regulated pharmacies. 

Can you buy Malarone over the counter?

Malarone malaria tabelts are a prescription only treatment, meaning it has to be prescribed by a doctor or pharmacist. Malarone can not be purchased over the counter, however it can be bought online following an online consultation with a UK prescriber.

Malarone alternatives

Malarone is available as both a branded and generic version. Both medicines work to treat and prevent malaria, although the generic version is cheaper than the branded one.

Lariam tablets are also available to buy from Medicine Direct. Lariam is a highly renowned antimalarial medication and is effective in certain regions where malaria has grown resistant to other forms of medicine. This medicine should be taken once a week.

Malarone Dosage

Our pharmacists and prescribers follow NICE guidelines when prescribing Malarone. 

Each tablet of malarone contains 250mg of Atovaquone and 100mg of proguanil hydrochloride.

How to take Malarone malaria tablets

• As a preventative medicine for malaria, adults should start to take Malarone one or two days before they travel to the destination.
• Keep taking Malarone each day while you are there.
• Take Malarone for 7 days after you travel to a malaria-free destination.
• Take Malarone at the same time each day.
• Swallow the tablets whole with a drink of water.
• Take the tablets with food.

If you forget to take a dose, take it as soon as you remember and continue taking the tablets as normal.

If you are sick within one hour after taking Malarone, take another dose straight away.

Read the patient information leaflet for a full list of instructions before you start taking Malarone.

Malarone Side Effects

Side effects while taking Malarone are uncommon. 

Rarer side effects of Malarone may include:

• An increased heart rate
• Panic attacks, crying
• Seizures (fits)
• Cholestasis
• Hepatitis
• Nightmares
• Indigestion
• Severe mental problems where you lose contact with reality or cannot think clearly
• Inflammation of the blood vessels
• Increased skin sensitivity to sunlight
• Blisters
• Mouth ulcers
• Skin peeling
• Hallucinations 

Speak to your doctor if any of the above reactions bother you.

Serious allergic reaction

In rare cases, it is possible to suffer a serious allergic reaction to Malarone. You should either call 999 or go to A&E straight away if you experience any of the following symptoms:

• You are wheezing
• You are finding it difficult to speak or breathe
• You have swelling in your face, mouth, lips, tongue or throat
• You have tightness in your chest or throat
• You develop a skin rash that may be red, itchy, swollen, blistered or peeling skin

These lists are not exhaustive. Please read the patient information leaflet, which will come with your medication, for full details on side effects. 

Malarone warnings and drug interactions

Malarone may interact with other medicines, which may hinder its effectiveness and increase your risk of side effects.

In particular, tell your doctor if you are currently taking any of the following:

• Etoposide, which is used to treat cancer
• Metoclopramide, which is used to treat nausea and vomiting
• The antibiotics tetracycline, rifampicin or rifabutin
• Any medicines to stop blood clotting, such as warfarin
• Efavirenz or certain highly active protease-inhibitors used to treat HIV

Find out if you are taking any medications that interact with atovaquone and any medications that interact with proguanil.

Pregnancy and breastfeeding

Malarone should not be taken by women who are pregnant unless a doctor recommends it.

Malarone's ingredients can get into your breast milk and may harm your baby. Women who are breastfeeding should not take these tablets.

We recommend using BUMPS for additional information on taking this medication during pregnancy and breastfeeding. 

Malarone Ingredients

The main active ingredients within this medicine are: Atovaquone and Proguanil hydrochloride.

For a full list of the inactive ingredients, please read the Summary of Product Characteristics.

How much does Malarone cost in the UK?