Does hydroxychloroquine cause shortness of breath?

What happens if I overdose on Hydroxychloroquine (Plaquenil)? Overdose symptoms may include drowsiness, vision changes, seizure, slow heart rate, weak pulse, pounding heartbeats, sudden dizziness, fainting, shortness of breath, or slow breathing (breathing may stop). Keep this medicine out of the reach of children.

What are the most common side effects of hydroxychloroquine?

What is the most serious side effect of hydroxychloroquine sulfate Plaquenil )?

Get medical help right away if you have any very serious side effects, including: severe dizziness, fainting, fast/irregular heartbeat, seizures. This medication may cause serious eye/vision problems.

How does hydroxychloroquine make you feel?

Hydroxychloroquine may cause some people to be agitated, irritable, or display other abnormal behaviors. It may also cause some people to have suicidal thoughts and tendencies, or to become more depressed. If you or your caregiver notice any of these side effects, tell your doctor right away.

What is the downside of taking hydroxychloroquine?

Nausea, vomiting, loss of appetite, diarrhea, dizziness, or headache may occur. If any of these effects last or get worse, tell your doctor or pharmacist promptly. Remember that this medication has been prescribed because your doctor has judged that the benefit to you is greater than the risk of side effects.

Dyspnea, or shortness of breath: Causes and treatment

How long can you be on hydroxychloroquine?

You may continue to get better for up to 1 year. Most people who take Plaquenil also take other medicines for pain and stiffness.

Can I stop taking hydroxychloroquine cold turkey?

Your body doesn't become dependent on Plaquenil during treatment. So if you stop taking it, this won't cause withdrawal symptoms. If you take Plaquenil for lupus or rheumatoid arthritis, you may notice that stopping treatment makes your condition get worse.

Do the side effects of hydroxychloroquine go away?

Can any side effects be long-term? Most of Plaquenil's side effects are temporary, and last for a few days or weeks. But some side effects could be long-term. For example, tinnitus (ringing in your ears) or hearing loss caused by Plaquenil may not go away.

How long can you take hydroxychloroquine for rheumatoid arthritis?

Hydroxychloroquine does not seem to confer increased risk when used in patients with rheumatoid arthritis without contraindications in the short term (up to 30 days) compared with sulfasalazine, but confers an increased risk of cardiovascular mortality when used long term.

What are the benefits of taking hydroxychloroquine?

Over the long term hydroxychloroquine can reduce pain, swelling and joint stiffness. If you have lupus, it may also improve the rash. It may be as long as 12 weeks before you notice the benefits. Hydroxychloroquine is often taken in combination with other drugs such as methotrexate.

What can hydroxychloroquine do to your heart?

Hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine can cause abnormal heart rhythms such as QT interval prolongation and a dangerously rapid heart rate called ventricular tachycardia.

What does hydroxychloroquine do for arthritis?

Hydroxychloroquine is used in the treatment of arthritis to help relieve inflammation, swelling, stiffness, and joint pain and also to help control the symptoms of lupus erythematosus (lupus; SLE). A common brand name for hydroxychloroquine is Plaquenil®.

How does hydroxychloroquine help autoimmune disease?

Hydroxychloroquine acts by suppressing Toll-like receptors to trigger important immunomodulatory effects. Hydroxychloroquine is a well-established and effective therapy for systemic and cutaneous lupus and other autoimmune diseases.

Who should not take hydroxychloroquine side effects?

What is the safest drug for rheumatoid arthritis?

Methotrexate is widely regarded as one of the safest of all arthritis drugs, though it carries some potential downsides. Gastrointestinal symptoms such as nausea and vomiting are its most frequent side effects.

Does hydroxychloroquine help with fatigue?

Over time, Plaquenil helps reduce inflammation around the heart and lungs and improves symptoms such as fatigue, fever, and cognitive dysfunction. And patients report more energy because it's a mild stimulant.

What can I take instead of hydroxychloroquine?

Types of antimalarials

Hydroxychloroquine (Plaquenil) is the most common antimalarial for lupus. If you can't take hydroxychloroquine, your doctor may recommend chloroquine (Aralen®). These medicines can be taken as pills or liquids.

Which is safer methotrexate or hydroxychloroquine?

Safety variables at 6 month were within normal physiological ranges and did not differ in groups (p>0.05) indicating that both methotrexate and hydroxychloroquine were effective and safe to use in rheumatoid arthritis. The difference in the incidence of adverse effects, total or individual, was almost nil.

How long does it take for hydroxychloroquine to work for inflammation?

Most people start noticing the effects about six to eight weeks after they start to take the medication, but full benefit may not be apparent for up to three months. It is important to be patient and continue taking your medication.

What are the long term effects of hydroxychloroquine?

Long-term use and high doses of hydroxychloroquine are risk factors for the development of cardiomyopathy. Cardiac failure, conduction disorders (including QT prolongation and Torsades de Pointes) and sudden cardiac death are consequences of the cardiomyopathy.

Does hydroxychloroquine affect blood pressure?

Clinically, patients with lupus treated with hydroxychloroquine present a lower prevalence of thromboembolic events [13, 14] and chronic treatment with hydroxychloroquine reduced hypertension and improved endothelium-dependent relaxation in conduit vessels from SLE mice [15].

Does Plaquenil affect your sleep?

Even anti-malarials, such as hydroxychloroquine, can cause sleep difficulties and strange dreams. Taking such medications earlier in the day can be helpful in mitigating these effects.

Does hydroxychloroquine affect the brain?

Hydroxychloroquine may potentially result in adverse effects on the central nervous system, mainly irritability, nervousness, emotional changes, nightmares, and even true psychoses [3, 4].

Does hydroxychloroquine make you gain weight?

Abnormal weight gain is a side effect of long-term doxycycline and hydroxychloroquine treatment.

Can you take Plaquenil for life?

Plaquenil and other anti-malarials are the key to controlling lupus long term, and some lupus patients may be on Plaquenil for the rest of their lives. For this reason, you can think of anti-malarials as a sort of “lupus life insurance.”