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Artesunate (artemisinin?)

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Posted 1/19/2015 1:05 PM (GMT 0)
I'm trying to work out a lot of things with my treatment protocol :-(. I may be posting a lot this week! First of all, I've been taking artesunate 4 times a day throughout my treatment (over a year now). I've taken it all thru my time on abx, and also the last couple of months whilst on herbals. Thing is, I don't really fully know what it's doing (that the other things aren't doing already), and it's REALLY expensive (nearly £100 a pot! :-( Which lasts 5-6 weeks). Aside from the cost, I wonder if it's good for me to be continually taking this drug for such a long time :-/. I raised these issues with my doc, and she's given me the option to stop if I want, but I don't want to jeopardise my treatment and recovery if it's actually really doing some good :-/. What do you think?
Posted 1/20/2015 11:22 PM (GMT 0)
Sorry, but . . . anyone got any thoughts on this? :-/
Posted 1/20/2015 11:35 PM (GMT 0)
I can't help you - don't know what Artesunate is.

Hoping someone will have some advice for you...
This will bump your post up, so it stays on the first page longer.
Posted 1/22/2015 12:01 AM (GMT 0)
Thank you girlie :-). I think it's something like artemisinin or something, or a derivative of it? Looks like no one else has heard of it either though! :-/
Posted 1/22/2015 1:31 AM (GMT 0)
Hi Flossie

I took it a while before starting Lyme treatment. It is an antiviral, works for HHV6.1

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19501020

Here is some more information
phoenixrising.me/treating-cfs-chronic-fatigue-syndrome-me/immune/alternative/artesunate-in-chronic-fatigue-syndrome-mecfs-treatment

Hope this helps you on your way!

MarieLS
Posted 1/22/2015 6:44 AM (GMT 0)
I think she uses that for co infections if I remember correctly, it's an anti malarial also used for babesia
Posted 1/22/2015 8:34 AM (GMT 0)
Thanks for those links Marie, I'll check them out today.

Hi Carl, yes, I seem to make a connection with it being used for babesia too . . . I also heard it was an anti malarial. But my symptoms are more bartonella than babesia anyway. And, when I've tried to ask about it, they say it's for the lyme :-/ . . . Just seems like I've been on it for a long time, not exactly sure what it's doing, and it's very expensive . . . and I never really hear of anyone else on the forum taking it . . . so it's something I'm taking but don't really know why particularly :-/
Posted 1/25/2015 5:18 AM (GMT 0)
Hmmm. I used artemisinin for babesia but that was for only ten days at a high dose. It is anti parasitic / anti malaria ( babesia third cousin to malaria ) in nature. Artesunate is just a derivative of artemisinin. Not sure what a year long long need for it would do....
Posted 1/25/2015 11:47 AM (GMT 0)
I was on artemisinin continually for years but then my LLMD wanted me to pulse it for three weeks on and one week off. I still herx when I start it up again.

You could try stopping it for a while and then start it up again. If you have a herx reaction, it is still doing you some good.
Posted 1/25/2015 11:54 AM (GMT 0)
Hi Flossie,

I take artemisinin too. My doctor has me taking it once a day for 5 days of the week, three weeks out of the month. He said it's good to not take it continuously. Hope this helps!
Posted 1/25/2015 2:06 PM (GMT 0)
Buhner also says that artemisia and it's extracts (artemisinin, artesunate) should only be used over the short term for acute infection. That if it is going to work it will fairly quickly. If you see no improvement or reaction to it, it is not going to work for you, and to discontinue.
Posted 1/25/2015 2:10 PM (GMT 0)
I second Rowingmom. If you have been on it for a year and notice no difference, you are wasting your hard earned money!

I just read this statement in Horowitz's book......

"I have found that 30 days of treatment is adequate in up to 80% of cases in determining whether or not the patient will respond to a specific regimen. Therefore, I consider rotating the regimen after 1 month if a particular treatment does not appear to be working."
Posted 1/26/2015 12:08 AM (GMT 0)
Thank you so much everyone for your thoughts on this! I just feel I've been taking it for so long, and I'm a bit concerned about taking the same thing constantly for all that time . . . plus of course, it's really expensive, so if there's no point taking it, then I'd rather not! Can you tell me though (and apologies if it's a stupid question) but are the Buhner herbs still actually killing any remaining infection/bacteria? . . . now that I'm no longer taking abx (I was on them for over a year, but switched to herbs a couple of months ago) I don't want to stop the artesunate if that's the only thing left that's actually killing anything now, if you see what I mean :-/. So will the Buhner herbs be taking care of that anyway??

Thanks again, so much, for all your advice, I'm really grateful
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