Conclusions highly expected by the world… Leaders of the Recovery clinical trials have disclosed the first results of their study on using hydroxychloroquine as a treatment against coronavirus. And the first observations are irrevocable: chloroquine derivative does not show “beneficial effects” against the virus. “We have concluded that there is no beneficial effect if hydroxychloroquine in patients hospitalized with COVID-19” searchers explain in a press release, adding that there is “no significant difference in the primary endpoint of 28-day mortality or hospital stay duration”.
The first observations pushed the British scientific authorities to stop enrolling patients of the hydroxychloroquine arm with “immediate effect” the release adds. Scientists also say that they have decided to release “the preliminary results as they have important implications for patient care and public health”.
A clinical trial that was yet still on despite a controversial study was published a few days ago in The Lancet, then withdrawn and questioned by three of the authors. Today, as they are all reviewing studies around this treatment, Recovery cut ties with it, but keeps on performing trials on other likely treatments. “Although it is disappointing that this treatment has been shown to be ineffective, it does allow us to focus care and research on more promising drugs” Recovery chief investigator Peter Horby commented.
For the record, this clinical trial led on over 11,000 patients in 175 hospitals, aims at assessing the “efficacy of several treatments against COVID-19”. Yet as for the part focusing on the effects of hydroxychloroquine, it included a group with 1,542 patients that have been given the treatment and a control group with 3,132 patients that have been given standard drugs.
The first result should yet “change medical practice worldwide and demonstrates the importance of large, randomized trials to inform decisions about both the efficacy and the safety of treatments” Recovery chief investigator says.
