'There was no evidence of benefit, and a consistent signal of harm'
as a treatment for COVID-19, researchers found little evidence that it helps, and worrying evidence that the medication may cause harm., scientists in the U.S. and Switzerland report on an analysis of more than 96,000 people hospitalized with confirmed COVID-19 in 671 hospitals on six continents. Nearly 15,000 patients were treated with one of the following: chloroquine , hydroxychloroquine, or either of those drugs in combination with an antibiotic.
People in any of the four treatment groups were more likely to die during their hospitalization than those not treated. People receiving either chloroquine or hydroxychloroquine alone were 16% to 18% more likely to die in the hospital compared to those not receiving the medications, and those treated with these medications in combination with an antibiotic were 22% to 24% more likely to die in the hospital.
In addition, those receiving the medications had higher risk of developing abnormal heart rhythms — a known risk factor of chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine — compared to people who were not treated with the medications. “However we sliced and diced the data, the results were identical,” says Dr. Mandeep Mehra, chair of cardiovascular medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, who led the study. “There was no evidence of benefit, and a consistent signal of harm — and in particular, harm linked to heart rhythm disturbances.”, which he requested from the White House physician, because he “heard a lot of good stories.
Hydroxychloroquine is approved to treat malaria — replacing chloroquine in many parts of the world after the malaria parasite became resistant to chloroquine — as well as some autoimmune disorders like rheumatoid arthritis and lupus, because of its ability to tamp down inflammation.
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