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https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-who-drugs/who-halts-
hydroxychloroquine-hiv-drugs-in-covid-trials-after-failure-to-reduce-death-idUSKBN2450OJ
GENEVA (Reuters) - The World Health Organization (WHO) said on Saturday that it was
discontinuing its trials of the malaria drug hydroxychloroquine and combination HIV drug
lopinavir/ritonavir in hospitalised patients with COVID-19 after they failed to reduce mortality.
The setback came as the WHO also reported more than 200,000 new cases globally of the
disease for the first time in a single day. The United States accounted for 53,213 of the total
212,326 new cases recorded on Friday, the WHO said.
“These interim trial results show that hydroxychloroquine and lopinavir/ritonavir produce little
or no reduction in the mortality of hospitalised COVID-19 patients when compared to standard
of care. Solidarity trial investigators will interrupt the trials with immediate effect,” the WHO
said in a statement, referring to large multicountry trials that the agency is leading.
The U.N. agency said the decision, taken on the recommendation of the trial’s international
steering committee, does not affect other studies where those drugs are used for non-hospitalised
patients or as a prophylaxis.
Another branch of the WHO-led trial is looking at the potential effect of Gilead’s antiviral drug
remdesivir on COVID-19. The European Commission on Friday gave remdesivir conditional
approval for use after being shown to shorten hospital recovery times.
The solidarity trial started out with five branches looking at possible treatment approaches to
COVID-19: standard care; remdesivir; hydroxychloroquine; lopinavir/ritonavir; and lopanivir/
ritonavir combined with interferon.
WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told reporters on Friday that nearly 5,500
patients in 39 countries had been recruited so far into its clinical trials and that interim results
were expected within two weeks.
Some 18 experimental COVID-19 vaccines are being tested on humans among nearly 150
treatments under development.
Mike Ryan, WHO’s top emergencies expert, said on Friday that it would be unwise to predict
when a vaccine could be ready. While a vaccine candidate might show its effectiveness by year’s
end, the question was how soon it could then be mass-produced, he said.