Sleep Better (and Malaria-Free) with Atovaquone-Proguanil

Chemoprophylaxis is essential for keeping travelers to malaria-endemic areas healthy. Growing drug resistance in Plasmodium falciparum has necessitated the use of agents -- such as mefloquine -- that commonly have adverse effects. Neuropsychiatric symptoms such as sleep disturbances have limited mefloquine tolerability, resulting in decreased patient adherence. Recently, the combination of atovaquone and proguanil has been shown to be as effective as mefloquine and less likely to cause side effects when used to prevent malaria in lifelong residents of endemic areas. But what about tourists to these regions?

Enrolled at 15 European travel clinics, 976 nonimmune subjects (age, ≥3 years) who were planning to spend up to 28 days in malaria-endem…