Chloroquine and its derivatives are widely used to treat malaria. As scientists scramble to develop a cure for the new coronavirus, there is a growing global demand for drugs typically used to treat malaria.
One such drug is chloroquine and its derivative, hydroxychloroquine, recently made famous by Donald Trump. However, the World Health Organization has found no convincing evidence of the drug’s effectiveness against coronaviruses. Who is using this drug today and what do experts say about it?
President Trump has often talked about the high potential of hydroxychloroquine in White House briefings, and even said at a recent press conference: “You’ve got nothing to lose, take it.” [Image]
President Trump’s advice: “You have nothing to lose, take it.” Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro even claimed in his video address that “hydroxychloroquine works universally.” However, Facebook deleted the video because it violated its rules against misinformation.
In fact, chloroquine tablets have long been used in the treatment of malaria to reduce inflammation and fever. It is therefore possible that the drug may also help with Covid-19, as this disease also often causes high fever.
According to the BBC’s medical correspondent James Gallagher, “laboratory research has suggested that chloroquine inhibits the coronavirus, and some doctors have even provided indirect evidence that it helps. However, clinical trials have not yet convincingly demonstrated that this drug is an effective treatment for patients with Covid-19. On the contrary, the risk of side effects, including kidney and liver damage, is quite high. We explain quickly, simply, and clearly what happened, why it matters, and what will happen next.”
The number of offers should remain: Episodes End of Story Podcast Advertising In fact, many scientists doubt the effectiveness of the drug. For example, Professor Catherine Selie-Radtke of the American University of Maryland (who is also Vice President of the International Society for Antiviral Research) cautions against promoting chloroquine and believes that it receives undeserved attention. She notes that many clinical trials have shown the drug to be ineffective in treating Covid-19. “More importantly, it may have dangerous side effects and give people false hope,” she wrote on the website sciencealert.com.
In particular, Seli-Radtke points to clinical trials of a drug called hydroxychloroquine in Marseille, France, conducted by doctors who speak of the benefits of chloroquine for coronavirus. However, the expert notes that while some results seem encouraging, the vast majority of patients who supposedly benefited from the drug did not have serious symptoms of the disease, not even a high fever. “This suggests that these patients would have gotten rid of the virus on their own without any medical intervention,” the professor writes.
“To better evaluate its efficacy, we need larger and higher quality clinical trials,” said Komi Gbinigi, a researcher at the University of Oxford and author of the report on the use of antimalarial drugs in Covid-19. More than 20 such studies are currently underway in the United States, United Kingdom, Spain and China. In the Americas, combined regimens of chloroquine, hydroxychloroquine and the antibiotic azithromycin are also being tested in patients with Covid-19.
The Russian text translates as The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Saturday approved the emergency use of chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine for the treatment of Covid-19 in limited hospital settings. [Image]
In the Americas, several clinical trials of antimalarials in combination with antibiotics are underway. This does not mean that the FDA has finally recognized the effectiveness of these drugs. Hospitals can simply request these drugs from government warehouses to treat Covid-19 patients in special cases.
The U.S. government announced that one of the pharmaceutical companies based in Germany has donated 30 million doses of hydroxychloroquine to U.S. authorities. This antimalarial drug is used to varying degrees in different countries. In France, doctors are allowed to prescribe drugs to patients with coronavirus, although medical authorities warn of side effects. In India, it is recommended that hydroxychloroquine be used prophylactically by health care workers and by persons who have been in contact with confirmed coronavirus-infected persons and who have received a prescription from a treating physician. At the same time, Indian authorities are warning against the uncontrolled use of antimalarial drugs, stressing that they should only be used as “experimental drugs” and only in emergency cases. Several countries in the Middle East have approved the use of these drugs or are conducting clinical trials. These countries include Bahrain (where hydroxychloroquine was reportedly first used to treat patients with coronavirus), Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia. [Image]
Chloroquine and its derivatives have attracted worldwide interest as the number of coronavirus cases continues to rise. As interest in this drug as a potential cure for coronavirus has grown, the demand for chloroquine has skyrocketed in many countries. This has led to shortages.
Chloroquine and its derivatives have always been widely available in pharmacies in developing countries for the treatment of malaria. However, the effectiveness of these drugs gradually declined as the malaria parasite became increasingly resistant. In Jordan, a ban on the sale of hydroxychloroquine in pharmacies was introduced to prevent panic buying of the drug. Similar measures have been taken by authorities in Kuwait, where the drug is now available only in hospitals and medical centers. In Kenya, chloroquine has been removed from over-the-counter sales and is now only available by prescription. India, the world’s largest producer of antimalarial drugs, has banned their export. President Trump even made a personal request to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to allow the United States access to these drugs. [Image]
The use of chloroquine is recommended only under the supervision and with the permission of a doctor. Many residents of Nigeria still regularly use chloroquine to prevent malaria, despite a 2005 ban on the use of chloroquine for preventive purposes due to the drug’s diminished effectiveness. When news reached Lagos in February that China was studying the possibility of using chloroquine to treat coronavirus, people immediately started buying up the drug. And after Donald Trump spoke about this medicine as a means to fight the virus, a real frenzy began and the medicine quickly sold out in all pharmacies and shops in Nigeria. At the same time, authorities continue to remind residents that “WHO does not approve the use of chloroquine to treat Covid-19. According to official sources in Lagos, not all recommendations are always taken at face value, and there have already been cases of death from chloroquine overdose.