Patients have been desperate for drugs that can treat or prevent COVID-19 – but experts caution against the approach that President Trump said he is taking.
Patients have been desperate for drugs that can treat or prevent COVID-19 – but experts on Tuesday cautioned against the approach that President Donald Trump said he is taking.
Hydroxychloroquine works against all kinds of viruses in a test tube, including the flu, HIV, chikungunya and dengue, he said. But that effectiveness does not seem to translate to people – either to reduce illness or, in at least one flu trial, to prevent it. The drug can cause side effects such as diarrhea and eye problems that could be confused with COVID-19 and might add to a patient’s anxiety, said Jacqueline Fincher, president of the American College of Physicians, who runs a private practice in Thomson, Georgia.
Aaron Glatt, chief of infectious diseases at Mount Sinai South Nassau in New York, said he prescribed hydroxychloroquine early in the pandemic, when there were no other options because “we were seeing people die all around us.” It was worth it while the drug was being studied, he said. But in light of questions about the drug’s safety and the lack of evidence to suggest it’s helpful, he is no longer willing to prescribe it for seriously ill patients.
Michael Hogue, president of the American Pharmacists Association, said pharmacists have been concerned about maintaining access for chronic patients, and they try to ensure a constant supply for them.
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