Wednesday, October 2, 2013

Mefloquine, the Common Soldier, and Prince Harry

There are threads here on PA where Mefloquine is mentioned, but perhaps it's time for another question to be raised (and this is definitely worthy of its own thread): [B][SIZE="3"][COLOR="red"]Tesla's Q: As a veteran of the USAF, I am asking a simple question: Did Prince Harry have to take mefloquine when he went to Afghanistan?[/COLOR][/SIZE][/B] [url]http://www.publichealth.va.gov/exposures/mefloquine-lariam.asp[/url] [SIZE="4"][B]Mefloquine (Lariam®)[/B][/SIZE] Mefloquine (brand name: Lariam®) is a drug that has been given to military personnel, including those serving in Somalia, Iraq, and Afghanistan, for protection against malaria. Malaria is an infectious disease transmitted by mosquitoes. [url]http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2013/sep/27/soldiers-psychotic-drug-mefloquine[/url] Soldiers at risk from anti-malarial drug, claims ex-senior medical officer MoD continuing to prescribe mefloquine, which has been linked with several murders and suicide among troops Press Association theguardian.com, Thursday 26 September 2013 19.07 EDT British soldiers are being put at risk of developing psychosis by taking an anti-malarial drug that has been banned by the US military, it is claimed. Mefloquine, also known as Lariam, has been linked to a number of suicides and murders among troops, with the US Food and Drug Administration advising against those with a history of depression from taking it. A spokesman for the Ministry of Defence said it continued to prescribe mefloquine on the advice of Public Health England. He said the MoD participated in the Medicines Healthcare Regulation Agency's "Yellow Card scheme", where all adverse reactions to any medication are reported directly to the MHRA, which is responsible for investigating any claims. [url]http://seattletimes.com/html/localnews/2021423075_balesmefloquinexml.html[/url] Originally published July 18, 2013 at 9:22 PM | Page modified July 18, 2013 at 10:49 PM Did malarial drug play role in Bales’ Afghan murders? A document has surfaced, just weeks before Staff Sgt. Robert Bales faces a sentencing trial for murdering 16 Afghan civilians, that suggests a link between the rampage and the use of the malarial drug mefloquine. By Hal Bernton Seattle Times staff reporter Staff Sgt. Robert Bales, guilty of murdering 16 Afghan civilians, used a controversial malarial drug linked to paranoia, hallucinations and psychosis while serving in Iraq, according to his lawyer. Whether Bales took the same drug in the days leading up to his murderous rampage near a remote Army outpost in Afghanistan is unclear, even as a new document has emerged suggesting he did. Earlier this month, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration released a 2012 “adverse event” notification from a pharmacist who reported that an unnamed Army soldier taking mefloquine murdered Afghan civilians. [url]http://forum.prisonplanet.com/index.php?topic=202491.0;wap2[/url] **letter to general tacket wv about human experimentation on troops** (1/1) pdf_muncher: the news forum doesn't actually get as many views as general, was hoping some military people would see this: Quote from: pdf_muncher on February 28, 2011, 01:01:15 PM TO: General Allen Tackett, WVNG, Ret. 2/28/2011 RE: 2004 Mefloquine human drug trials in Uzbekistan affecting 130th AW troops [url]http://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?54541-Robert-Bales-Lawyer-Client-Suffers-PTSD-Thu-Jan-17-2013.-Mefloquine-the-Untold-Story-[/url] Robert Bales Lawyer: Client Suffers PTSD Thu, Jan 17, 2013. Mefloquine, the Untold Story! Please read and try hard to understand the following, part of it is a personal account from personal military experience! TWTCS KNOWS people who lost jobs directly after being given Mefloquine tablets. This is a serious issue worthy of a closer look. People are leaving Mefloquine out of the Robert Bales Debate -- WHY? From a confidential email: [QUOTE] "As a matter of practice, KBR provides medical mobilization physicals > prior to employees deploying to international projects; this is done to > determine the medical aspects of fitness for regions with limited > medical resources. On projects, KBR will look to the client to determine > if any added health measures are necessary for employees, contractors or > subcontractors. > > The company also collects information on pre-existing biological, > infectious, environmental and physical hazards of the project areas from > the client, as well as quarantine requirements for sensitive > environments such as preventing non-native insects, infestations and > diseases from being transmitted to a project site or back from a project > site. Any guidance as to additional health procedures will then be > incorporated at the direction of the client. > > KBR provides immunizations against diseases and harmful agents endemic > to each employee's destination in accordance with the recommendations of > Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, International SOS, and the > World Health Organization. KBR employees working under the LOGCAP III > contract from 2001 - 2005 were prescribed Malarone as the primary > prophylaxis for malaria. Malarone was the only anti-malarial medication > prescribed to employees until KBR made the decision in late 2005, based > upon guidance from the military, to administer Doxycycline as the > primary prophylaxis."[/QUOTE] [url]http://www.cnn.com/2013/01/21/world/asia/prince-harry-afghanistan-foster/index.html[/url] Prince Harry on Afghan mission: 'Take a life to save a life' By Max Foster and Peter Wilkinson, CNN updated 11:36 AM EST, Tue January 22, 2013 [IMG]http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/dam/assets/130121162638-01-prince-harry-afghanistan-horizontal-gallery.jpg[/IMG] (CNN) -- Britain's Prince Harry has acknowledged that he killed Taliban insurgents on his latest tour of duty in Afghanistan as a crew member of an Apache attack helicopter. Harry has been serving for four months as a co-pilot gunner (CPG) in southern Helmand province -- considered a Taliban heartland -- and flew on scores of missions with the trigger to rockets, missiles and a 30mm cannon at his fingertips. No one is saying how many insurgents Harry might have killed but toward the end of his deployment, the 28-year-old, known to his comrades as Captain Wales, shared some of his feelings about combat with reporters while on duty in the massive military base known as Camp Bastion. He said it was sometimes justified to "take a life to save a life. That's what we revolve around, I suppose." [url]http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/military/story/2011-11-19/military-malaria-drug/51311040/1[/url] Army curbs prescriptions of anti-malaria drug Updated 11/19/2011 11:56 AM Comments LOS ANGELES (AP) – Almost four decades after inventing a potent anti-malarial drug, the U.S. Army has pushed it to the back of its medicine cabinet. [url]http://nation.time.com/2013/07/22/sgt-scapegoat-the-latest-on-lariam-and-the-sergeant/[/url] MILITARY MENTAL HEALTH SGT Scapegoat? The Latest on Lariam and the Sergeant By Elspeth Cameron Ritchie July 22, 20130 Read Later ARMY PHOTO / SPC. RYAN HALLOCK Staff Sergeant Robert Bales in 2011. Email Print Share Comment Follow @TIME What a difference a month can make. In late June, I published “A Smoking Pillbox,” about a report of a soldier with a history of traumatic brain injury, who after taking Lariam (mefloquine), had gunned down 16 Afghan civilians. Another post followed, with more details from an FDA “adverse event report”.