Is there a future for hydroxychloroquine/chloroquine in prevention of SARS-CoV-2 infection (COVID-19)?

Abstract

CorrespondenceTo cite Moiseev S, Avdeev S, Brovko M, et al. Ann Rheum Dis Epub ahead of print: [please include Day Month Year].

Neither earlier nor late tocilizumab improved outcomes in the intensive care unit patients with COVID-19 in a retrospective cohort study

“…Unfortunately, our findings are in line with the preliminary results of phase III trials of IL-6 inhibitors in patients with severe COVID-19 pneumonia. We agree with Ramiro et al 2 that initial immunosuppressive treatment, if considered necessary in these patients, should involve widely available and inexpensive glucocorticoids, whereas IL-6 inhibitors, as chloroquine/hydroxychloroquine,13 may be preserved for patients with rheumatic diseases in whom these medications have established efficacy.…”

Clinical characteristics of 1007 intensive care unitpatients with SARS-CoV-2 pneumonia

“…Лечение гидроксихлорохином не привело к снижению риска интубации или смерти. Хотя полученные данные не позволяют исключить пользу гидроксихлорохина, переоценивать ее также не следует [40]. При лечении аминохинолиновыми препаратами следует учитывать и возможные нежелательные эффекты, в частности диспептические нарушения и удлинение интервала QT (особенно при одновременном приеме азитромицина), которое может привести к увеличению риска угрожающих жизни аритмий [41].…”

Response to: ‘Correspondence on ‘Clinical course of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in a series of 17 patients with systemic lupus under long-term treatment with hydroxychloroquine’’ by Nikpouret al

“…9 Together, these studies do not support the notion of a therapeutic effect of HCQ in both mild to moderate and severe forms of COVID-19. HCQ is also under investigation in several clinical trials for prophylaxis of SARS-CoV-2 infection, 10 but their results have not yet been reported. Nevertheless, an irrefutable demonstration of the usefulness of HCQ for the treatment of COVID-19 will be very difficult to obtain, because its therapeutic effectiveness (or ineffectiveness) is very likely to depend on the administered dose, as well as its combined use with azithromycin.…”