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Artesunate for HHV-6, anyone?

Sasha

Fine, thank you
Messages
17,863
Location
UK
Someone just mentioned this to me and I found there are some fairly old threads on it. Just wondering if anyone had good results and/or lack of side-effects using this for HHV-6? Doesn't seem to be much of a scientific literature on that specific topic. I'm wondering about this as a safer approach than Valcyte.
 

vli

Senior Member
Messages
653
Location
CA
hi Sasha i am kind of interested in this too as frankly... i seem to be running out of options in terms of AVs (if my current cidofovir IVs do nothing for me). one person who tried it said they developed hearing loss and so stopped but from what i gather doesn't this have to be imported from china??? I live in hong kong which is why this person said i could try getting it in the first place. How would you get it in the UK?

Edit: oh, i see online it says ?"In the UK, artesunate is available on a named patient basis only."
 

Sasha

Fine, thank you
Messages
17,863
Location
UK
Artesunate is derived from artemisinin which seems to be available from health food stores but presumably also carries risks and I haven't read enough to know anything about that yet.
 

MEMum

Senior Member
Messages
440
Hi Sasha
My daughter was prescribed artesunate at Breakspear for HHV-6 and HCMV, She also had an ongoing strep infection for which she was on injected penicillin. She did significantly improve for 3 months last year, after about 7 weeks on these. We then got diverted onto having a tonsillectomy as the ENT doc thought the tonsils could be the source of the strep infection.
As an adult she is now under Dr Bansal. He doesn't reckon Artesunate does much...There are articles about it being an antiviral at least in vitro. It's easy to take and didn't have noticeable side effects. Unfortunately we haven't been able to replicate the improvement and she has since been diagnosed with antibodies to certain receptors in the basal ganglia.
Hope this is useful
 

jstefl

Senior Member
Messages
250
Location
Brookfield, Wisconsin
I used Hepasunate 50 from www.hepalin.com for a while. It contains 50 mg of pharmaceutical grade Artesunate.

I did feel a definite benefit for a while, but once the methylation started kicking in, I no longer seemed to need it.

It is expensive, $ 50.00 for 60 tablets, so that was my main consideration for stopping. I was also a bit leery of the warnings, so I took only three capsules a week. That was enough to make a noticeable difference in the way I felt, so I didn't push any harder.

I had previously taken Valcyte, so I didn't need it for HHV-6.

John
 

Sasha

Fine, thank you
Messages
17,863
Location
UK
Hi Sasha
My daughter was prescribed artesunate at Breakspear for HHV-6 and HCMV, She also had an ongoing strep infection for which she was on injected penicillin. She did significantly improve for 3 months last year, after about 7 weeks on these. We then got diverted onto having a tonsillectomy as the ENT doc thought the tonsils could be the source of the strep infection.
As an adult she is now under Dr Bansal. He doesn't reckon Artesunate does much...There are articles about it being an antiviral at least in vitro. It's easy to take and didn't have noticeable side effects. Unfortunately we haven't been able to replicate the improvement and she has since been diagnosed with antibodies to certain receptors in the basal ganglia.
Hope this is useful


Thanks, MEMum - it's interesting to hear Dr Bansal's view. I hope your daughter is doing better these days.
 

Sasha

Fine, thank you
Messages
17,863
Location
UK
I used Hepasunate 50 from www.hepalin.com for a while. It contains 50 mg of pharmaceutical grade Artesunate.

I did feel a definite benefit for a while, but once the methylation started kicking in, I no longer seemed to need it.

It is expensive, $ 50.00 for 60 tablets, so that was my main consideration for stopping. I was also a bit leery of the warnings, so I took only three capsules a week. That was enough to make a noticeable difference in the way I felt, so I didn't push any harder.

I had previously taken Valcyte, so I didn't need it for HHV-6.

John


Thanks - that's interesting that you felt a benefit but it sounds as though you had maybe already cleared up your HHV-6. Nothing is simple!
 

Ema

Senior Member
Messages
4,729
Location
Midwest USA
I actually just restarted artesunate. I'm using much higher doses this time around as it seems like that is the key for those who report success. I believe Myhill recommends 2 mg/kg. At this dose, it gets expensive in a hurry!

I'm also pulsing 4 days on and 3 days off. I'm not sure if this is necessary with the artesunate form though. If anyone knows If artemisinin and artesunate differ in this regard, it'd be great to know.
 

redaxe

Senior Member
Messages
230
I actually just restarted artesunate. I'm using much higher doses this time around as it seems like that is the key for those who report success. I believe Myhill recommends 2 mg/kg. At this dose, it gets expensive in a hurry!

I'm also pulsing 4 days on and 3 days off. I'm not sure if this is necessary with the artesunate form though. If anyone knows If artemisinin and artesunate differ in this regard, it'd be great to know.

Thanks please keep us updated on this. We need some more focus on artesunate. It is supposed to be able to block the low level smoldering or early antigens that are hypothesized to be the problem with HHV6 so theoretically at the correct dosage one could assume it would work faster than Valcyte and maybe with less side-effects.
 
Messages
2
Hi Sasha
My daughter was prescribed artesunate at Breakspear for HHV-6 and HCMV, She also had an ongoing strep infection for which she was on injected penicillin. She did significantly improve for 3 months last year, after about 7 weeks on these. We then got diverted onto having a tonsillectomy as the ENT doc thought the tonsils could be the source of the strep infection.
As an adult she is now under Dr Bansal. He doesn't reckon Artesunate does much...There are articles about it being an antiviral at least in vitro. It's easy to take and didn't have noticeable side effects. Unfortunately we haven't been able to replicate the improvement and she has since been diagnosed with antibodies to certain receptors in the basal ganglia.
Hope this is useful

Hi MEMuM,

I'm sorry to trouble you. My name is Daniel Im from Ukraine and have HHV6 , EBV. I have now following symptoms - fatigue, swollen lymph nodes, pharyngitis, problems with sleeping and many others awful symptoms. I would like to try artemisinin or artesunate. Your and other posts about its significant action gives me a hope, that I can recover. Unfortunately Ukrainian doctors haven't experience with the artemisinin/artesunate. If it is possible, could you answer me on following questions:

1.May be your daughters doctors told you about the difference between artesunate and artemisisnin? Are both drugs effective, or artesunate is more effective than artemisinin? It is easier for me to buy artemisin than artesunate.

2. If it will be artemisinin , I want to buy this -www.amazon.com/Nutricology-Super-Artemisinin-Vegicaps-60-Count/dp/B000KIK6C4 . Its ok?

3. Please let me know if this is the usual dosing guide that doctors recommend:

1) 200 mg of Artemisinin or 50 mg of Artesunate once a day before meals (approximately for 30 minutes before meal)

2) I have to take the dosage 5 days, then 2 days break

3) Did your doctor advise you that you could take artesunate/artemisinin safely for more than 4 weeks? I have read, that long-term artesunate use can be dangerous. Did the doctor prescribe long term use?

4) Did a doctor recommend cyclic dosing or did they say that one cycle would be enough? I mean first 1(3) months cycle, then break for example for two weeks, then again 1(3) month's etc. Or a doctor said one cycle is enough?


5) In case if you daughter had side-effects, what did her doctor suggest to do?

6) Did your daughters doctor tell you about any harmful interactions between art/arm and any other drugs or supplements?

7) How you as mother can estimate an effect after treatment? I hope results are stable?

8) Did the doctor prescribe valtrex after art/arm?

Thank you in advance for your answers and please excuse me for a lot of questions. Your answers are very important for me.

Best wishes Daniel
 

Biarritz13

Senior Member
Messages
699
Location
France
I actually just restarted artesunate. I'm using much higher doses this time around as it seems like that is the key for those who report success. I believe Myhill recommends 2 mg/kg. At this dose, it gets expensive in a hurry!

I'm also pulsing 4 days on and 3 days off. I'm not sure if this is necessary with the artesunate form though. If anyone knows If artemisinin and artesunate differ in this regard, it'd be great to know.

Hi Ema!

Still on Artesunate? Could you give us an update please? TY.
 
Messages
20
.

Best wishes Daniel

Hi koenig79, contact me, i am from Ukraine too.

To all. You should take artesunate with some butter or ghee, because it is not bioavailable without fats. I did mistake first and take it early in the morning before food. Had little effect.
My wife took it after foood, because she had liver complains. Lowered her hhv6 to zero for a while.
 
Messages
20
Valtrex works good, no side effects. But viruss gets resistant fast.

My best bet is Valgancyclovir if you can afford this. It toxic, halts dna production. Most of recovery stories are based on valgan.

I doubt that artesunate alone can kill hhv6. It clears hhv6 in blood in a week, but hhv6 almost not existent in blood. Also it does not pass BBB. Going to try art again togetrher with valtrex and valgan. Someone should die and i hope not me :))