The efficacy of Chloroquine derivatives in COVID-19: a meta-analysis based on the first available reports

We are currently facing a pandemic involving a newly discovered coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) which putting our societies to the test in many ways. Despite controversy, only two drugs, namely hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) and chloroquine (CQ), have been used by physicians on a large-scale basis as treatment forCOVID-19 [1]. According to the Sermo Real Time Covid-19 Barometer (https://www.sermo.com/, consulted 20 April), for over 20,000 physicians across 30 countries, chloroquine derivatives are the first medication used to treat COVID-19 patients in ICUs (67%), the second medication in other hospital settings (66%),and the third in outpatient settings (40%). While many countries recommend it for treating COVID-19, certain Western countries do not (https://www.mediterranee-infection.com/coronavirus-pays-ou-lhydroxychloroquine-est-recommandee/). It is therefore urgent to evaluate the efficacy of these medications against clinical, biological, radiological and virological outcomes of the disease.

A large number of randomised clinical trials (RCTs) aimed at challenging the antiviral action of the two drugs against a placebo or other potentially active drugs are ongoing. Some of these studies have been published in peer-reviewed journals or released as pre-prints on various websites [2-5]. In this paper, we present the conclusions of a preliminary meta-analysis addressing this issue.

Summary - reality beats academic theory.

The media’s contribution to people’s ignorance about drugs is the media’s over emphasis of what ailment a drug is commonly known to be treated for, leading most people to conclude that a drug known to be commonly used against one ailment (malaria) cannot possibly be beneficial against another ailment (Wuhan Virus).

People need to understand they do not know chemistry, or human chemistry well enough to know why and how most drugs work, and why a drug used against one ailment may even work as well or even better against another ailment, as long as the chemistry of the drug works against the chemical reactions necessary to the agent causing the ailment.

I take a pain med that some decades ago was never thought of as a pain reliever - it was mostly prescribed to epileptics to help prevent epileptic seizures.

In actuality medical science is still not totally sure how it works a a nerve pain reliever (it is not metabolized in the body, is expelled in its whole form in the urine, does not get combined with other chemicals in the body). They do know it does manage to cross the blood-brain barrier. But - they are unsure exactly how it works - what they do know is the mere presence of the chemical/drug in the chemistry in the brain causes a change (they are not sure how) in the neuro-chemical reactions of neurotransmitters in the brain. Had that reality not been acknowledged they may never have admitted its use in fighting pain, for its chemical mechanism was not looked for and is still not fully understood - only that it does work.

You can be sure if such a drug with such not fully understood mechanism was tried for fighting the Wuhan Virus and those efforts were successful, it would be panned by the media, the FDA and all the “experts”, because it could not be explained exactly how it worked, so it would never pass the tests for getting “officially” approved.

This meta-study only looked at studies where HCQ or CQ had been compared with placebo or some other treatment. Therefore the Italian study on RA and Lupus patients was not included. I haven’t read it but it has been stated that in 65000 patients there were no fatalities. Given Italy’s population of ca 60 million and 28000 persons dead due to COVID-19 we can make an estimate that one would have expected about 30 fatalities among the RA/Lupus patients.

Of course this has to be corrected for the gender and age profile of the patient group, the geographical location etc.

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.