WHO to discontinue hydroxycholorquine trial for COVID-19

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has informed that it is ending the trial into whether anti-malarial drug hydroxychloroquine helps patients hospitalised with COVID-19.

WHO said it has “accepted the recommendation” from the committee overseeing the trial to discontinue testing of hydroxychloroquine and lopinavir/ritonavir, a drug combination used to treat HIV/AIDS. The drugs were being compared with standard care for hospitalised patients.

It said that a review of the interim results showed hydroxychloroquine and lopinavir/ritonavir “produce little or no reduction in the mortality of hospitalised COVID-19 patients when compared to standard of care.”

The agency added that while there was no “solid evidence” of increased mortality for hospitalised patients given the drugs, there were “some associated safety signals in the clinical laboratory findings” of an associated trial.

WHO said the decision won’t affect possible trials on patients who aren’t hospitalised, or on those receiving the drugs before potential exposure to the coronavirus or shortly afterwards.