63 Documents the Government Doesn't Want You to Read - Jesse Ventura [34]
Additionally, two pages of the inprocessing form for ISN 760 are available and were analyzed. In order to supplement these sources, the Center’s Research Fellows analyzed other publicly-available documents. These include contemporaneous statements by government authorities regarding malaria treatment practices at GTMO, Standard Operating Procedures, and published, peer reviewed medical studies.
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I. Mefloquine was not given to detainees in a manner consistent with malaria treatment. Mefloquine is an antimalarial drug that can be used for prophylaxis or for treatment with different dosages and administration for each. The dosage administered and the timing of each dose of mefloquine to detainees suggests that the military may have used it for treatment purposes without first ascertaining whether the detainee actually had malaria. It is highly likely that the military was treating uninfected individuals with high doses of a dangerous drug.
The prophylactic dosage of mefloquine, 250 mg, is much smaller than the treatment dose given to GTMO detainees, 1250 mg, and is administered once per week as opposed to the single dose1 used for treatment purposes.2 Severe adverse side effects do occur during prophylactic use, but adverse effects during use for treatment are far more common and more severe, probably due to the larger dosage. Use of mefloquine, even when used to treat a confirmed case of the disease, is contraindicated3 when the patient has a history of certain disorders.4
Detainees were given 1250 mg of mefloquine during inprocessing at GTMO; 750 mg as an initial dose and 500 mg 12 hours later.5 There is no indication that the routine administration of mefloquine to arriving detainees considered each detainee’s medical history.6 Administering the drug at the higher treatment dose without previously determining the need for any treatment was a dramatic departure from the accepted standard of medical care.7 Doctors have widely prescribed mefloquine, commercially sold as Lariam by manufacturer Roche USA, throughout the United States and elsewhere as a prophylactic against malaria infection. 10 Mefloquine can cross the blood-brain barrier,11 and has a relatively long half-life at 15 to 33 days until elimination.12 This means that the drug can enter brain tissue and remains in the body for a long period of time. As Dr. G. Richard Olds, an internationally recognized tropical disease specialist and Founding Dean of the University of California at Riverside School of Medicine, told the Center, “Mefloquine is fat soluble and as a result it does build up in the body and has a very long half-life. This is important since a massive dose of this drug is not easily corrected and the ‘side effects’ of the drug could last for weeks or months.” Dr. Olds’s view is well supported by the medical literature reviewed by the Center for this Report.
A. Side Effects Can Be Severe
Mefloquine, at any dose, is known to cause adverse neuropsychiatric effects such as anxiety, paranoia, hallucinations, aggression, psychotic behavior, mood changes, depression, memory impairment, convulsions, loss of coordination (ataxia), suicidal ideation, and possibly suicide.14 As many as 25% of persons who have taken mefloquine reported such severe side effects.15 These neuropsychiatric side effects are more prevalent and more severe in patients with a history of certain disorders and conditions or when taken in combination with certain medications, requiring careful prescribing that is dependent on a thorough and complete review of each patient’s medical history.16
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II. Mefloquine Was Given to Detainees Without Regard for Necessity or Contraindications
Upon a detainee’s arrival at GTMO, military personnel administered 1250 mg of mefloquine to each detainee as part of standard in-processing orders, according to GTMO Medical Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs).48 This is corroborated in practice by government medical records for two detainees.49 Very few medical records have ever been released for GTMO detainees, and those the government has released