Geneva: The flip-flop of the World Health Organisation over Hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) continues. On 17 June 2020, WHO announced that the hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) arm of the Solidarity Trial to find an effective COVID-19 treatment was being stopped.
According to the WHO, “The trial’s Executive Group and principal investigators made the decision based on evidence from the Solidarity Trial, UK’s Recovery trial and a Cochrane review of other evidence on hydroxychloroquine.”
Data from Solidarity (including the French Discovery trial data) and the recently announced results from the UKs Recovery trial both showed that hydroxychloroquine does not result in the reduction of mortality of hospitalised COVID-19 patients, when compared with standard of care.
Investigators will not randomise further patients to hydroxychloroquine in the Solidarity trial. Patients who have already started hydroxychloroquine but who have not yet finished their course in the trial may complete their course or stop at the discretion of the supervising physician.
This decision applies only to the conduct of the Solidarity trial and does not apply to the use or evaluation of hydroxychloroquine in pre- or post-exposure prophylaxis in patients exposed to COVID-19.”
Last month the WHO dropped hydroxychloroquine from its global study into COVID-19 treatments.
Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General, WHO stated that in light of a paper published in The Lancet, that showed people taking hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) were at a higher risk of death and heart-related problems than those who were not taking HCQ.
After the US firm Surgisphere report in The Lancet was questioned earlier this month, the WHO resumed its HCQ arm of the Solidarity Trial. Now it does another flip-flop.
