Scientists in Australia are looking closely at a duo of drugs that could prove to be efficient against COVID-19 . All being well , they could even start recruiting patient role for the clinical trial by the conclusion of March .
Professor David Paterson , conductor of the University of Queensland Centre for Clinical Research , toldnews.com.authat his lab is looking to trial two survive drug to treat patients with COVID-19 .
One drug is used for patients with HIV and the other delicacy malaria , known aschloroquine . Although both have been mostly superseded by a newer generation of drugs , they could find a new lease on life in the world ’s struggle against the novel coronavirus responsible for for COVID-19 .
The two drugs have already been come across to extinguish the novel coronavirus in test subway . There has also beensome preliminary evidencefrom China and other parts of the world that advise chloroquine can be used as part of an effective antiviral therapeutic treatment for affected role with COVID-19.Professor Paterson added that one of the medications was devote to some of the first the great unwashed to test positive for COVID-19 in Australia and result in over recovery .
So , next up , Paterson and his team are looking to gather some more operose datum to replace theanecdotal reports . They trust to start recruiting participants for the clinical tryout in the coming few weeks to see whether they could be utilize as a treatment for the infectious disease .
“ It ’s a potentially effective discourse , ” Professor Paterson toldnews.com.au .
" What we want to do at the moment is a big clinical trial across Australia , look at 50 hospitals , and what we ’re buy the farm to compare is one drug , versus another drug , versus the combining of the two drugs , ” he added .
" There have already been patients treated with these in Australia and there ’s been successful outcomes but it has n’t been done in a verify or a comparative means , ” Paterson bear on . “ We want to give Australians the absolute safe discussion rather than just someone ’s guesses or someone ’s anecdotal experiences from a few the great unwashed . ”
This is n’t the only group look at the potency of these drugs . As mentioned , scientist in China have alreadypublished some resultsthat suggest chloroquine , along with the antiviral drug remdesivir , could be used to treat affected role with COVID-19.Elon Muskhas even lightly suggested(above ) that chloroquine could be used against COVID-19 , citinga recently published paperfrom Stanford University School of Medicine .
However , there has also been a fair amount of misinformation about the use of chloroquine to treat COVID-19.AFP Fact Checkreports that a misleading news article , widely shared in Nigeria , has claim that chloroquine has been “ discover effective against coronavirus ” and has cured “ 12,552 patients in China . ” There has also been a WhatsApp vocalisation substance circulating in Nigeria thatwrongly claimsthat chloroquine phosphate is a cure for COVID-19 .
