Chloroquine, an anti-malaria drug that was once widely used around the world in the fight against coronavirus, has not been listed in the official protocol for the treatment of COVID-19 patients in Serbia since Aug. 16, it was learned. Kurir.
Who gave up
Although initially the Americans, Chinese, French and other renowned experts in the world recommended chloroquine and praised its achievements in the treatment of kovida 19, some subsequent research has shown that this drug is not as effective. The World Health Organization (WHO) announced in May this year that it was temporarily abandoning the use of hydroxychloroquine in the treatment of covid-positive patients. and heart problems.
photo: Marina Lopicic
Dr. Goran Stevanović, director of the KCS Infectious and Tropical Diseases Clinic, did not want to specify for Kurir yesterday why chloroquine is no longer in the treatment protocol:
– I will not comment on the treatment protocols in public and in the media. It is a matter for experts.
photo: Tanjug / Dimitrije Nikolić
Prof. Dr. Zarko Rankovic, an infectious disease specialist and crisis staff member in Nis, told Kurir that both the US and EU countries originally included chloroquine in the treatment protocol, and then removed it, because they didn’t there was evidence of their effective action. as it says, it carries a great risk because it is toxic to the heart.
– Chloroquine was administered according to the recommendations that existed at that time. When we received the algorithms for the treatment, chloroquine was left as a possible possibility, but with the utmost caution in its application. He didn’t just give up. The recommendation was that its negative effects should be taken into account, explains Dr. Ranković.
He points out that this drug is not dangerous, that it has been used for years to treat malaria and some other diseases, but that caution is needed in those with heart problems.
– For now, there is no drug that is one hundred percent effective in treating kovida 19. All of these are just different therapeutic attempts. At the moment, we only talk about the positive effect of the corticosteroid dexamethasone, symptomatic therapy, the use of vitamin C and high doses of vitamin D, but that is all for now – explains Dr. Ranković.
photo: Prinstcreen
Pulmonologist Dr. Tatjana Radosavljević points out to Kurir that chloroquine is a very successful antimalarial, as well as that it is effective in the treatment of some systemic connective tissue diseases and autoimmune diseases, but that experts differ on the treatment of kovid 19.
Cheap medicine
– Opinions are divided, but the truth is that some countries still use it in treatment. The drug is safe, but, as with other medications, some people may find it more difficult to tolerate, so side effects and heart problems can occur, says Dr. Radosavljević.
He adds that chloroquine is much cheaper than the drug “remdesivir,” which is also used in therapy and costs several thousand dollars:
– More time needs to pass and serious analysis needs to be done to show which drug or combination of drugs has been shown to be most effective in treating patients.
THE CARDIOLOGIST’S EXAMINATION WAS MANDATORY
It was given only to patients without heart problems.
photo: Shutterstock
As we have learned, chloroquine has been used with great caution in hospital treatment until now, and prior to application, it was necessary for the patient to go to a cardiologist for an examination.
– All patients went to see a cardiologist before the introduction of chloroquine and had an ECG done to determine if they could receive it. Why he was expelled, I don’t know … The protocols have changed. This is the ninth in a row. Therefore, chimomycin was used a lot for a while and then discarded, says a Kurir expert employed at one of the covid hospitals in Serbia.
SIDE EFFECTS OF CHLOROQUINE
Eye diseases: common
Loss of appetite: common
Gastrointestinal tract diseases: common
Nervous system disorders: uncommon.
Heart disease: rare
Diseases of the blood and lymphatic system: rare.
Immune system disease: very rare
Ear and vestibular labyrinth diseases: rare
Liver and gallbladder disease: rare
Musculoskeletal and connective tissue and bone diseases: rare
CHLOROKIN IS USED
In the prophylaxis and therapy of four types of human pathogenic causes of malaria
In chronic polyarthritis (multiarticular rheumatic disease), including rheumatic joint disease in children
In systemic lupus erythematosus (disease of the immune system)
