Soldiers File Anti-Malaria Drug Compensation Claims For Lariam

Soldiers, who suffered from the side effects of the anti-malaria drug Lariam, are seeking compensation from the State for neuropsychiatric side-effects, brain damage and motor-neurone disorders. The drug was given to Irish soldiers who were deployed in Chad and Liberia while serving with the UN, despite it being known to have serious side effects such as depression, anxiety and forgetfulness. It is also alleged in the claims filed against the State, that the soldiers were prescribed the drug even though their army medical files indicated that it was unsuitable for them.
Lariam is a trade name for mefloquine – a drug which is used to prevent and combat malaria in areas where mosquitoes have developed a resistance to the more commonly used chloroquine – and, as it needs to be administered only once a week, is preferred to alternative mefloquine anti malaria alternatives. However, the potential side effects are well chronicled.
In the United States, Lariam was banned for distribution amongst the Armed Forces in 2009 after it was linked with a series of suicides by Special Forces soldiers in 2002 and following a series of complaints from veterans who have suffered both psychological and physical side effects – which in numerous cases did not surface until many years later.
The Defence Forces have confirmed that ten serving soldiers are undergoing treatment for possible side effects of Lariam, but this could be just the tip of the iceberg, as several thousand Irish soldiers have served in the area in the past few years. Indeed, only last month, it was revealed that the Department of Defence had increased their compensation budget by almost 50% (to 6 million Euros) to allow for an anticipated increase in the number of claims from soldiers who had been administered Lariam.
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