World Health Organization has discontinued the trials of two kinds of drugs as a potential treatment for COVID-19 after they failed to reduce mortality. One is Hydroxychloroquine (an anti-malarial drug) and the other is Lopinavir/ Ritonavir (the drugs used in HIV).

Today, the UN health body accepted the recommendation from the Solidarity Trial’s International Steering Committee to discontinue the trial’s hydroxychloroquine and lopinavir/ritonavir arms. The Solidarity Trial was established by WHO to find an effective COVID-19 treatment for hospitalized patients.

According to the WHO official statement:

• The International Steering Committee formulated the recommendation in light of the evidence for hydroxychloroquine vs standard-of-care and for lopinavir/ritonavir vs standard-of-care from the Solidarity trial interim results, and from a review of the evidence from all trials presented at the 1-2 July WHO Summit on COVID-19 research and innovation.

• These interim trial results show that hydroxychloroquine and lopinavir/ritonavir produce little or no reduction in the mortality of hospitalized COVID-19 patients when compared to standard of care. Solidarity trial investigators will interrupt the trials with immediate effect.

• For each of the drugs, the interim results do not provide solid evidence of increased mortality. There were, however, some associated safety signals in the clinical laboratory findings of the add-on Discovery trial, a participant in the Solidarity trial. These will also be reported in the peer-reviewed publication.

• This decision applies only to the conduct of the Solidarity trial in hospitalized patients and does not affect the possible evaluation in other studies of hydroxychloroquine or lopinavir/ritonavir in non-hospitalized patients or as pre- or post-exposure prophylaxis for COVID-19. The interim Solidarity results are now being readied for peer-reviewed publication.

  

Hydroxychloroquine is the same drug that US President Trump had touted as a potential treatment for COVID-19 in April. Soon after, global hoarding of the drug began and people also started taking it without prescription. Doctors advised against using HCQ without prescription due to its several side effects.

International trials had been underway trying the anti-malarial drug as a potential treatment of the viral disease. The UN health agency dropping the hydroxychloroquine trial is a big blow to scientists' hopes of finding a cure for the novel coronavirus infection.