The anti-inflammatory hydroxychloroquine should not be used to prevent COVID-19, according to a new recommendation from the World Health Organization.
Several clinical trials of more than 6,000 people have shown that the drug has had no significant effect on death or hospital admissions in people who have had no previous exposure to COVID-19.
The trials showed “moderate certainty” that not only did hydroxychloroquine have no significant effect on laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 infection, but it also likely increased the risk of adverse effects.
The WHO recommendation was Published at The BMJ, a medical journal. A panel of WHO experts is studying different drugs that can be used to prevent COVID-19 infection, and the hydroxychloroquine recommendation is the first that the panel has published.
“The panel considers that this drug is no longer a research priority and that resources should be used to evaluate other more promising drugs to prevent COVID-19,” said the WHO in a statement.
The recommendations are aimed at “providing reliable guidance on the management of COVID-19 and helping doctors make better decisions with their patients,” said the WHO.
Hydroxychloroquine was initially approved as an anti-malarial drug and is also used to treat lupus and rheumatoid arthritis.
The drug gained prominence after the old President Trump
Donald TrumpSacha Baron Cohen calls ‘danger of lies, hatred and conspiracies’ in Golden Globe speech Sorkin uses the quote by Abbie Hoffman to condemn Capitol violence: Democracy is ‘something you do’ Former Trump adviser, Pierson, planning to run for Congress MORE, members of his administration and his supporters have continually promoted it as a miraculous treatment for COVID-19 and as a prophylactic, despite little evidence.
Last spring, Trump said he was taking hydroxychloroquine, in combination with zinc, as a way to prevent COVID-19 after a White House aide was diagnosed with the disease.
Trump contracted COVID-19 in October and recovered largely through the use of a monoclonal antibody treatment that at the time was not authorized by the Food and Drug Administration.
The promotion by Trump and his allies created a rush to the drug, resulting in a shortage of patients who needed it. Some states are still trying to deal with stocks acquired during the height of the hydroxychloroquine craze last spring.
The FDA issued an emergency use authorization for the drug last March, and outside observers felt that the agency gave in to political pressure.
The permit was finally withdrawn in June due to serious security problems. The agency cited failures of clinical trials to show that the drug may not be effective in treating COVID-19 or preventing people who have been exposed, and that the potential benefits do not outweigh the risks.
A separate study by the National Institutes of Health found that hydroxychloroquine has no benefit for hospitalized patients.