HCQ can be used as preventive treatment against Covid: ICMR

HCQ can be used as preventive treatment against Covid: ICMR

Sushmi.Dey@timesgroup.com

New Delhi:27.05.2020

A day after WHO suspended testing of hydroxychloroquine for Covid-19 patients, the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) said the use of the drug as a prophylaxis has been approved based on observational studies in India, which have indicated anti-viral properties with no major sideeffects.

Clarifying that the anti-malarial medicine can be continued as preventive treatment against Covid-19 in high risk people, ICMR Director General Dr Balram Bhargava said studies show the drug is safe and effective after considering the balance of risks and benefits. ICMR recently expanded its use for front-line workers after cautioning its application in certain cases.

Sources said that doses prescribed by India were low and did not compare with those being tested by WHO. Dr Bhargava said it was two 400 mg tablets to start with and then one tablet a week. He said the drug has been used for long with HCQ seen as safer than chloroquine. Interestingly, WHO officials also said there were no safety issues in the trials but a decision has been made due to abundant precaution.

Dr Bhargava said the decisions in India are based on findings of observational and case-controlled trials. In India, HCQ is approved as prophylactic treatment for use in front-line workers involved in containment activities, healthcare workers and family members taking care of Covid-19 patients. Bhargava said the biological plausibility of HCQ made it a likely anti-viral drug. “We did some in-vitro study in labs and found that it has anti-viral properties. This drug became suddenly popular when the American government also started using it and they got-fast track approval or emergency use authorisation. We also thought that it may be a useful drug for prevention of Covid,” he said.

The DG said taking the biological plausibility, in vitro data and safety level of the drug, the ICMR had recommended it for empiric use under strict medical supervision about oneand-a-half months ago. “During these four and a half to six weeks, we got some data – mainly from of observational studies and also case controlled studies -- in different cohorts in India. When we looked at that data from these studies, we found that it may be working and without major side-effects except nausea, vomiting and palpitations occasionally,” said Bhargava. This was often due to ingestion on an empty stomach.

Full report on www.toi.in

NO MAJOR SIDE EFFECTS