We know a lot about the coronavirus, but not a lot yet.
In addition to a vaccine, researchers are looking for drugs to treat Covid 19 patients.
What is ineffective, what helps?
An overview.
Since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic, researchers around the world have been looking for drugs as well as vaccines.
A
corona infection
runs differently.
Some Covid 19 patients have severe disease courses, while others only develop mild symptoms.
There are drugs against corona that are already being used successfully.
Others seem promising.
Munich - Even at the beginning of the corona pandemic, there was great hope for a drug that works against corona.
In the spring, for example, the antiviral drug
Remdesivir
was one of the first drugs against Sars-CoV-2.
Its use in seriously ill Covid 19 patients is now controversial.
An anti-AIDS drug quickly turned out to be ineffective.
An inexpensive cortisone drug was hailed by the World Health Organization (WHO) as a breakthrough in the treatment of the disease.
Coronavirus: What works with Covid-19
Dexamethasone (and corticoids)
The cortisone preparation
dexamethasone
shows promise
in patients who need oxygen - as the only drug that has been shown to reduce mortality.
The World Health Organization (WHO) and the European Medicines Agency therefore support its use.
The Federal Institute for Drugs and Medical Devices (BfArM) also followed the recommendation in mid-September.
According to studies, however, it may only work in the most severe cases.
Dexamethosan
is an artificial, much more effective variant of the human hormone cortisone.
It has been used against rheumatism and allergies for years.
The Federal Institute for Drugs and Medical Devices
Recent research suggests that other steroids may also lower mortality in hospitalized patients.
Remdesivir
According to US studies, the antivirus drug Remdesivir, originally developed against Ebola, shortens the
length of hospital stays for Covid-19 patients
.
Even
US President Donald Trump
was during his Covid-19's disease among others
Remdesivir
treated.
The US drug agency FDA officially approved the drug as the first drug for the treatment of Covid-19 patients (October 22, 2020).
Remdesivir is to be marketed by the US group Gilead under the name "Veklury".
However, remdesivir
as an anti-corona agent is controversial.
For example, a study published by the WHO on more than 11,000 patients from 30 countries came to the conclusion that the drug had "no or only minor effects" on the mortality or length of hospital stay of corona patients.
However, the data has not yet been reviewed by specialist colleagues or published in a specialist magazine.
+
The drug Remdesivir from the company "Gilead" is approved for the treatment of Covid-19 patients in the USA.
© OLIVIER DOULIERY / AFP
Coronavirus: what doesn't work
Malaria drugs chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine
Perhaps the most controversial drug in the pandemic is
hydroxychloroquine
, which is celebrated by its fans as a miracle drug and for a long time had its most prominent advocate in US President Trump.
Critics warn of serious side effects when treating corona patients with the anti-malarial agent.
In June, the British recovery study came to the conclusion that the drug
did nothing to reduce corona mortality
- a result that was also confirmed by the WHO study.
HIV drug
-
lopinavir-ritonavir
The drug combination otherwise used to treat and prevent HIV / AIDS has
proven to be ineffective
in hospitalized Covid 19 patients
.
Again, it was the recovery study that led to these results on June 29th.
Accordingly, the lopinavir-ritonavir combination, which is marketed under the name Kaletra, does not reduce the length of hospital stay or the risk of being artificially ventilated.
Nor does it decrease the death rate.
Coronavirus: What else is being tested
Synthetic antibodies
In the fight against viruses such as Sars-CoV-2, the body develops
antibodies
-
proteins
that are directed against certain pathogens.
These can be
made synthetically
in a
laboratory
and given to patients to boost their own immune response.
Trump also got this experimental treatment when he had to go to hospital with Covid-19.
plasma
Plasma
from the
blood of recovered corona patients
showed a promising effect early on when it was administered to Covid 19 patients - by drip or injection.
According to some studies, the use of what is known as convalescent plasma has already been shown to be effective in treating the Ebola virus or Sars, which belong to the same family as the new coronavirus.
However, according to the unanimous opinion of experts, further comparative studies are necessary for a clear statement - as is currently the case in the context of the recovery study.
Coronavirus: Other drugs for Covid-19 therapy
The
recovery study
is also currently investigating the effectiveness of
tocilizumab
, an immunosuppressive agent that the researchers hope could prevent excessive and potentially fatal inflammation in severe cases.
In addition, further studies are being carried out to examine the suitability of drugs that are used for other diseases.
A Swiss laboratory claims to have found an effective agent against corona viruses.
It is a herbal medicine.
What is it about the miracle cure from Switzerland?
(AFP, ml)
