British scientists on Friday halted a large trial that explored the use of the antimalarial drug, hydroxychloroquine, in patients with the COVID-19 pandemic, after initial results showed no benefit.
“We reviewed the data and concluded that there was no evidence of a beneficial effect of hydroxychloroquine in patients hospitalized for COVID, and decided to stop enrolling patients in the hydroxychloroquine arm with effect immediate, “said Martin Landray, a professor at Oxford University who is co-directing the so-called RECOVERY trial.
“It is not a treatment for COVID-19. It does not work,” he said.
“This result should change medical practice around the world,” he added. “We can now stop using unnecessary medicine.”
The antimalarial drug has been highly controversial since U.S. President Donald Trump said the drug could be a game-changer in the coronavirus pandemic and after a study published in the medical journal The Lancet last month, which conducted several COVID-19 studies to be arrested.
The Lancet study was withdrawn Thursday evening.
Landray, who is a professor of medicine and epidemiology at the University of Oxford, noted that “there has been enormous speculation and uncertainty about the role of hydroxychloroquine as a treatment for COVID-19” but – so far – “lack of reliable information from large randomized trials”.
He said that the preliminary results of the RECOVERY trial, which was a randomized trial – were now fairly clear: hydroxychloroquine does not reduce the risk of death in patients hospitalized with COVID-19.
“If you are admitted to the hospital, do not take hydroxychloroquine,” he said.
(With the exception of the title, this story was not edited by GalacticGaming staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
