Melarsoprol

Melarsoprol (INN) is a medicinal drug used in the treatment of Human African trypanosomiasis. It is also sold under the trade names “Mel B” and “Melarsen Oxide-BAL.” Melarsoprol is a highly dangerous treatment, only administered by injection under the supervision of a physician. It causes a range of side effects, among them convulsions, fever, loss of consciousness, rashes, bloody stools, nausea, and vomiting. It is fatal in and of itself in approximately 10% of cases. Eflornithine is a more modern and far less dangerous treatment for sleeping sickness, but is expensive, not widely available on the market, and most of its supply comes from donations from its manufacturer. Melarsoprol is often referred to as "arsenic in antifreeze" due to its composition and its unpleasant effects on patients.

Because the solvent propylene glycol in which Melarsoprol is presented can dissolve plastic, the drug must be administered via glass syringes.

Melarsoprol is also used in the treatment of Chagas disease, a New World trypanosomiasis discovered by the Brazilian doctor Carlos Chagas in 1909.

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