What the FDA labels say about taking them together
Carbamazepine and chloroquine
Carbamazepine's FDA label (Carbatrol) of August 17, 2026 names chloroquine in its drug interactions section; the chloroquine label PlainMeds reads does not name carbamazepine. The carbamazepine label: “… drugs metabolized by CYP1A2 or CYP3A4, phenytoin, CNS depressants, lithium, chloroquine, mefloquine Equetro may decrease the effectiveness of hormonal contraceptives.”
Check it at the source: the carbamazepine FDA label on DailyMed (effective August 20, 2026, Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation); the chloroquine FDA label on DailyMed (effective July 2, 2026, Rising Pharma Holdings, Inc.).
What does the carbamazepine label say about chloroquine?
Carbatrol label (Takeda Pharmaceuticals America, Inc., August 17, 2026), drug interactionsChloroquine and Mefloquine Anti-malarial drugs, such as chloroquine and mefloquine, may antagonize the activity of carbamazepine.
Equetro label (Validus Pharmaceuticals LLC, August 19, 2025), drug interactionsDRUG INTERACTIONS Cytochrome (CYP) 3A4 inhibitors, epoxide hydrolase inhibitors, CYP3A4 inducers, drugs metabolized by CYP1A2 or CYP3A4 (oral contraceptives, delavirdine, nefazodone), phenytoin, CNS depressants, lithium, chloroquine, mefloquine ( 7.1 , 7.2 , 7.3 ) Equetro may decrease the effectiveness of hormonal contraceptives.
Source: FDA drug label (Carbatrol, NDA020712), Takeda Pharmaceuticals America, Inc., effective August 17, 2026 (SPL set bc03e499-5bac-4293-bff4-6864153a624d), via openFDA
Source: FDA drug label (Equetro, NDA021710), Validus Pharmaceuticals LLC, effective August 19, 2025 (SPL set be478f3c-40f6-47cc-8ab9-f420a9372b1c), via openFDA
Source: FDA drug label (Tegretol), Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation, effective August 20, 2026 (SPL set 8d409411-aa9f-4f3a-a52c-fbcb0c3ec053), via openFDA; the full label on DailyMed
What does the chloroquine label say about carbamazepine?
Chloroquine's label (effective July 2, 2026) does not name carbamazepine in these sections. A label lists what its studies and reports found; it is not a complete list.
Source: FDA drug label (Chloroquine Phosphate), Rising Pharma Holdings, Inc., effective July 2, 2026 (SPL set 06c69e2b-211b-4746-9f3a-f86d36520570), via openFDA; the full label on DailyMed
These are the labels' own sentences. PlainMeds does not grade interactions; a pharmacist or prescriber can say what they mean for one person's medicines.
Both medicines on the record
| Carbamazepine | Chloroquine | |
|---|---|---|
| Labeled for | Bipolar disorder, Seizures and epilepsy | n/a |
| Boxed warning | Yes | No |
| Pharmacy cost (NADAC) | $0.119 per tablet 200 mg tablet | $6.65 per tablet 500 mg tablet |
| Shortage now | A presentation being discontinued | No current entry |
Source: FDA NDC Directory, CMS NADAC of October 7, 2026 and the FDA Drug Shortage Database (FDA files October 8, 2026)
What next?
- Check more medicines together
- up to five at once