key: cord-1055203-2594uw7p
authors: Korman, Tony M.
title: Favipiravir and the Need for Early Ambulatory Treatment of COVID-19
date: 2021-02-17
journal: Antimicrob Agents Chemother
DOI: 10.1128/aac.02489-20
sha: c566a786d6610f53c912f805cbf46a4c0fc21493
doc_id: 1055203
cord_uid: 2594uw7p

The commentary by McCullough emphasizes the urgent need for early ambulatory therapy of COVID-19 (1).….

However, confirmation of benefits in large, long-term studies is required prior to including colchicine in treatment algorithms (17) . Although thromboembolism is a well-recognized complication, the efficacy or safety of directly acting oral anticoagulant therapy for COVID-19 is not proven and cannot be recommended.

McCullough's fervent advocacy for attention to early ambulatory treatments of COVID-19 must be commended. This enthusiasm should be channeled into further RCTs to generate evidence of safety and efficacy of proposed treatments which may "turn the tide" against this deadly pandemic.

In the last 2 years, I was a speaker at meetings sponsored by Janssen (both unrelated to this work and both with no personal payment).

Favipiravir and the need for early ambulatory treatment of SARS-CoV-2 infection (COVID-19)

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Experimental treatment with favipiravir for COVID-19: an open-label control study. Engineering (Beijing)

AVIFAVIR for treatment of patients with moderate coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19): interim results of a phase ii/iii multicenter randomized clinical trial

A prospective, randomized, openlabel trial of early versus late favipiravir in hospitalized patients with COVID-19

An adaptive randomised placebo controlled phase II trial of antivirals for COVID-19 infection (VIRCO): a structured summary of a study protocol for a randomised controlled trial

Effect of colchicine vs standard care on cardiac and inflammatory biomarkers and clinical outcomes in patients hospitalized with coronavirus disease 2019: the GRECCO-19 randomized clinical trial

Colchicine for the treatment of myocardial injury in patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)-an old drug with new life?