[ProtectOurFreedom]

Objective To evaluate the safety and efficacy of 2 CQ dosages in patients with severe COVID-19.

Design, Setting, and Participants This parallel, double-masked, randomized, phase IIb clinical trial with 81 adult patients who were hospitalized with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection was conducted from March 23 to April 5, 2020, at a tertiary care facility in Manaus, Brazilian Amazon.

Interventions Patients were allocated to receive high-dosage CQ (ie, 600 mg CQ twice daily for 10 days) or low-dosage CQ (ie, 450 mg twice daily on day 1 and once daily for 4 days).

Results Out of a predefined sample size of 440 patients, 81 were enrolled (41 [50.6%] to high-dosage group and 40 [49.4%] to low-dosage group). Enrolled patients had a mean (SD) age of 51.1 (13.9) years, and most (60 [75.3%]) were men. Older age (mean [SD] age, 54.7 [13.7] years vs 47.4 [13.3] years) and more heart disease (5 of 28 [17.9%] vs 0) were seen in the high-dose group. Viral RNA was detected in 31 of 40 (77.5%) and 31 of 41 (75.6%) patients in the low-dosage and high-dosage groups, respectively. Lethality until day 13 was 39.0% in the high-dosage group (16 of 41) and 15.0% in the low-dosage group (6 of 40). The high-dosage group presented more instance of QTc interval greater than 500 milliseconds (7 of 37 [18.9%]) compared with the low-dosage group (4 of 36 [11.1%]). Respiratory secretion at day 4 was negative in only 6 of 27 patients (22.2%).

Conclusions and Relevance The preliminary findings of this study suggest that the higher CQ dosage should not be recommended for critically ill patients with COVID-19 because of its potential safety hazards, especially when taken concurrently with azithromycin and oseltamivir. These findings cannot be extrapolated to patients with nonsevere COVID-19.

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This is the study upon which the FDA made its recommendation to not use HCQ outside hospitals or clinical trials. I find several points interesting:

• this study found "...a higher dosage of chloroquine diphosphate for 10 days was associated with more toxic effects and lethality, particularly affecting QTc interval prolongation" but also "Primary outcome was "...reduction in lethality by at least 50% in the high-dosage group compared with the low-dosage group"
• The study size is small, 81 patients; this was a common complaint about Dr. Raoult's initial study.
• This study combined HCQ with azithromycin and oseltamivir (commonly known as Tamiflu). Zinc was not used in the cocktail.
• The patients were VERY sick when administered the cocktail; the outcomes for the cocktail seem to be best when started earlier in the course of the disease, not waiting until ARDS begins. The authors would not extrapolate their results to patients with non-severe cases.

[Jane Long]

Thanks for pointing out/posting the absurdity of this JAMA CQ study.

They didn’t even use the recommended protocol - as suggested by Dr Z and others.

They did NOT use HCQ or Zinc.

So, out the window their silly study goes.

[Pearls Before Swine]

If its good enough for my goldfish....

[Bob434]

bump

[true believer forever]

When will someone scream it to the heavens - it is NOT the HCQ causing cardiac incidents. It is the Z-PAK which has always been known to cause QT problems. it is NOT hcq, it is the ZPAK - and many doctors with cardiac COVID patients simply substitute doxycycline, which has ALWAYS been comparable to ZPAK.

Sorry about the caps - I was fighting the urge to caplock ongoing.

$$$ quote from the article: “...reduction in lethality by at least 50% in the high-dosage group compared with the low-dosage group”

[Revel]

Paul Sperry
@paulsperry_

If chloroquine’s so “dangerous” & even “poisonous,” why has the CDC for years been advising this:”Both adults and children should take one dose of chloroquine per week starting at least 1 week before traveling to the area where malaria transmission occurs”

https://www.cdc.gov/malaria/resources/pdf/fsp/drugs/chloroquine.pdf

That is a nice color brochure with some interesting details.

[Chauncey Gardiner]

The AMA has long been a leftist organization with a political agenda. In this case, they have committed scientific and medical malpractice by not being honest about HCQ. If the damn stuff is so bad, which lupus or malaria patients will they notify to take them off their medication?

[MHGinTN]

You and bramps need to go away. Every time you post anything, you are working to denigrate the President and/or poo poo the use of HYDROXYCHOLOQUINE.

You probably have no idea that choloquine diphosphate and hydroxychloroquine are very different drusg with very different side effect profiles. You are the enemy of the good. Sadly, you are too spiritually dead to see the blood accumulating on your hands.

BTW, agitprop, where is the zinc side of the efficacy scale?

[JonPreston]

[Buckeye McFrog]

Science has been politicized.

Ultimately that actually may kill us.

[dhuls]

I don’t see in the results where they actually tested a combination of CQ and azithromycin, just CQ... and once again not Hydroxychloriquine. Another bogus test.

[heartwood]

“Main Outcomes and Measures Primary outcome was reduction in lethality by at least 50% in the high-dosage group compared with the low-dosage group”

I think what this means is that a reduction of 50% in lethality would have been support for using high dose chloroquine.

That is not what happened, however. 39% of the high dose group died, 15% of the low dose group. The high dose group was older. They all had severe disease and the drug was chloroquine not hydroxychloroquine.

[wastoute]

According to Multiverse Theory somewhere this is all vary funny.

[Dick Vomer]

That’s the main reason that hydrocloroquine is used because of the lesser frequency of prolonged QT or heart problems

[Diogenesis]

very stupid.
it is too high a dose to begin with
AND QC is more dangerous than HCQ
because of rapid human cell membrane
penetration.

[A strike]

MaylA GabrielA SilvA BorbA

[catnipman]

another study designed to show failure of CQ/HCQ ... all doctors worth their salt know that antivirals are most effective only when given within 24-48 hours of the onset of symptoms, e.g., tamiflu for influenza and famciclovir for shingles ...

i’ve noticed that every one of these “studies” coming out dealt ONLY with giving CQ/HCQ to critically ill patients, which is indeed basically to late for them to usually have any positive effect ...

and yes:

1. it’s well known that CQ is substantially more toxic than HCQ

2. zith is what prolongs QTc

again, two more parameters designed to cause failure ...