Hydroxychloroquine for COVID-19 needs more data, says analyst

As COVID-19 spreads, the search for a treatment is ramping up. The antimalarial and immunosuppressant hydroxychloroquine has received some attention, including that of US President Trump.

There are currently around 60 planned or in-progress clinical trials to test its efficacy as a treatment for COVID-19. However, the results of recently completed clinical trials indicate there are not enough data to support hydroxychloroquine use for COVID-19 treatment at the level of expectations set by President Trump, says data and analytics company GlobalData.

Angad Lotay, infectious diseases analyst at GlobalData, commented: “As the initial results for the hydroxychloroquine clinical trials do not provide sufficient data, larger and more robust randomized clinical trials are needed to inform clinical guidance on the use, dosing, or duration of hydroxychloroquine for prophylaxis or the treatment of SARS-CoV-2 infection.”