DoH stops antimalaria, HIV drug trials

THE Department of Health (DoH) will discontinue the use of the antimalaria drug hydroxychloroquine as well as human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) medications lopinavir and ritonavir to treat coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) patients.

Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire told reporters on Sunday that the department would stop the usage of the HIV drug concoctions after the World Health Organization (WHO) released a statement that the medications had shown “little to no reduction” of the Covid-19 mortality rate.

“Based on the recent evidence and recommendations from our experts, we will be stopping the use of lopinavir and ritonavir among hospitalized patients,” she said.

As for the malaria drug, Vergeire said: “We have discontinued hydroxychloroquine early on when the evidence for this came out.”

While administering the said drugs did not reduce mortality, the WHO has clarified that there was no “solid evidence” that indicated the drugs to be harmful to Covid patients.

“For each of the drugs, the interim results do not provide solid evidence of increased mortality,” the organization said in a statement on Saturday.

WHO on Saturday bared that it had “accepted the recommendation” from the committee overseeing the trial to discontinue testing of hydroxychloroquine and lopinavir/ritonavir, a drug combination used to treat HIV/AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome). The drugs were

being compared with standard care for hospitalized patients.

It said a review of the interim results showed hydroxychloroquine and lopinavir/ ritonavir “produce[d] little or no reduction in the mortality of hospitalized Covid- 19 patients when compared to standard of care.”

It added that while there was no “solid evidence” of increased mortality for hospitalized patients given the drugs, there were “some associated safety signals in the clinical laboratory findings” of an associated trial.

The DoH said the Filipino patients who have opted with the treatment would be given an option to discontinue the medication.

The country has 361 participants in the solidarity trial, with the Health department aiming to bring it to 500.

The agency will use a “new regimen” for patients of the novel coronavirus: a combination of remdesivir and interferon.

“We will use remdesivir plus interferon as the new regimen versus remdesivir and interferon alone as a standard of care once the shipment of interferon arrives,” said Vergeire.

Last week, the DoH said the remdesivir had “promising results.”

As of Sunday, the Philippines had 44,254 virus cases after 2,434 new cases were reported.