Hydroxychloroquine
Hydroxychloroquine tablets in 200mg and 400mg strengths, an antimalarial also taken long-term for lupus and rheumatoid arthritis, sold in packs of 30 to 180.
All strengths and pack prices
| Strength | Pack | Price | Per tablet |
|---|---|---|---|
| 200mg | 30 tablets | $21.80 | $5.45 |
| 200mg | 60 tablets | $46.68 | $3.89 |
| 200mg | 90 tablets | $62.40 | $3.12 |
| 200mg | 120 tablets | $109.20 | $2.73 |
| 200mg | 180 tablets | $187.20 | $2.34 |
| 400mg | 30 tablets | $39.00 | $1.30 |
| 400mg | 60 tablets | $65.40 | $1.09 |
| 400mg | 90 tablets | $84.60 | $0.94 |
| 400mg | 120 tablets | $102.00 | $0.85 |
| 400mg | 180 tablets | $140.40 | $0.78 |
- Category
- Antiparasitics · Autoimmune Support
- Active ingredient
- Hydroxychloroquine
- Route
- Oral
- Form
- Tablet
- Strengths
- 200/400mg
You will receive a quality generic, depending on stock.
Shipped in a discreet, unmarked envelope.
Details
- Conditions
- Lupus erythematosus · Rheumatoid arthritis · Malaria
- Brands with the same ingredient
- Plaquenil
- Therapeutic Class
- Disease-modifying Antirheumatic Drug, Antimalarial
- Pharmacological Class
- Aminoquinoline
- Minor Side Effects
- Nausea, Stomach cramps
- Moderate Side Effects
- Skin rash, Headache
- Dosage Forms
- Tablet
- Administration Route
- Oral
- Originator
- Sanofi
- Onset Time
- Weeks
- Duration
- Ongoing
- Storage Instructions
- Store at room temperature.
- Drug Interactions
- Digoxin, Insulin
- Age Restrictions
- Consult a physician for paediatric use.
What you will receive
Hydroxychloroquine is a generic medicine sold under the name of its active ingredient, Hydroxychloroquine.
- The manufacturer depends on what is in stock when your order ships.
- It contains the same active ingredient, at the same strength, as the brand-name versions.
FAQ
Which Hydroxychloroquine strengths and pack sizes are available?
Hydroxychloroquine tablets come as 200mg and 400mg. Packs run from 30 to 180 tablets. Larger packs cost less per tablet.
How can I pay for Hydroxychloroquine and receive it in Hong Kong?
Pay by Visa, Mastercard or American Express on a secure, encrypted page, or use Bitcoin or Ethereum. Card details never reach the shop's servers. Tracked courier takes 5 to 9 business days with online tracking.
Which brand names does hydroxychloroquine have?
Brand names for hydroxychloroquine include Plaquenil and HCQS. Hydroxychloroquine tablets are a pure generic hydroxychloroquine product and are not any of those brands. Here, hydroxychloroquine can also be bought online as generic Plaquenil.
How long does hydroxychloroquine take to work for rheumatoid arthritis?
Joint pain and stiffness usually begin to ease over several weeks to months rather than days. The change is gradual, so a week or two of tablets often brings nothing noticeable yet; the benefit builds with steady use, and symptoms tend to return if the tablets are stopped.
Can I take antacids with hydroxychloroquine?
Yes, but leave a gap: take an antacid four hours before or four hours after your hydroxychloroquine dose, otherwise it can reduce how much of the tablet is absorbed. Cimetidine, another heartburn medicine, behaves differently — it can raise the amount of hydroxychloroquine in the body.
Can I drink alcohol with hydroxychloroquine?
Alcohol does not interact directly with hydroxychloroquine, so an occasional drink is not a concern. Heavy, regular drinking is a different matter: the liver processes this medicine, and years of heavy drinking can affect the liver.
Does hydroxychloroquine affect eyesight?
Rarely, yes. Years of treatment can damage the retina, the layer that senses light at the back of the eye, and higher daily doses make that more likely. Early changes cause no symptoms, so eye checks during a long course are how they get caught.
What is the 400mg hydroxychloroquine tablet used for?
It treats the same conditions as the 200mg tablet — lupus, rheumatoid arthritis and malaria — and simply puts a 400mg daily dose into one tablet instead of two 200mg ones. Some people take 200mg once or twice a day instead.
About Hydroxychloroquine
What hydroxychloroquine is used for
Most people meet hydroxychloroquine through a long-term diagnosis — lupus or rheumatoid arthritis — but it has a travel job too. It prevents and treats acute attacks of malaria in adults and children weighing more than 31kg, and it is taken for months or years to settle discoid lupus erythematosus (a skin form of lupus), systemic lupus erythematosus (lupus, where the immune system attacks joints, skin, blood vessels and organs) and rheumatoid arthritis. It is also used in porphyria cutanea tarda, where natural substances build up and make the skin painfully sensitive to sunlight.
Why results take months
The two uses work differently. Against malaria it kills the parasite. In lupus and rheumatoid arthritis it turns down immune activity instead of hitting one target, so the benefit builds up slowly. Joint pain and stiffness in rheumatoid arthritis usually ease over weeks to months, which is why a course is judged after months, not after the first few tablets.
Malaria, lupus and arthritis follow different schedules
For a trip to a malaria area the schedule starts before departure: one dose on the same day each week, begun one to two weeks before arrival, kept up during the stay and for four weeks after coming home. An active attack is treated with a first dose at once, a second six hours later, then two more at 24 and 48 hours. Lupus and rheumatoid arthritis are simpler, with one or two doses a day. In every case the tablet goes down whole, not split, chewed or crushed, and sits more comfortably with food or milk.
Side effects and interactions
Nausea, stomach discomfort, loose stools and headache are the usual early complaints, and they often settle. Rashes, dizziness, ringing in the ears and changes in hair colour or thickness are less common. Rarer and more serious are an irregular heartbeat, muscle weakness, blurred vision, low blood sugar and a sudden allergic reaction.
Leave four hours between an antacid and a dose, before or after. Cimetidine, another heartburn medicine, can raise the level of hydroxychloroquine, and medicines that affect heart rhythm, as well as diabetes treatments, interact with it too. After years on higher daily doses the retina can be affected, and the first changes cause no symptoms, which is why long courses come with eye checks.
Plaquenil and the two strengths
Plaquenil is hydroxychloroquine under its brand name, offered in the same 200mg and 400mg tablets. Only the name on the pack separates the two.
Sources
- Hydroxychloroquine: MedlinePlus Drug Information — National Library of Medicine
- Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) - symptoms, causes, complications and treatments - Healthdirect — Healthdirect Australia