Original scientific paper

https://doi.org/10.20471/acc.2022.61.03.05

Effects of Hydroxychloroquine Plus Favipiravir Treatment on the Clinical Course and Biomarkers in Hospitalized COVID-19 Patients with Pneumonia

Leman Acun Delen ; Department of Anesthesiology and Reanimation, Turgut Ozal University, Malatya Training and Research Hospital, Malatya, Turkey
Abdullah Gok ; Department of Anesthesiology and Reanimation, Turgut Ozal University, Malatya Training and Research Hospital, Malatya, Turkey
Umut Sabri Kasapoğlu orcid.org/0000-0003-2869-9872 ; Department of Critical Care Medicine, Turgut Ozal University, Malatya Training and Research Hospital, Malatya, Turkey
Ozlem Cagasar ; Department of Infectious Diseases and Clinical Microbiology, Turgut Ozal University, Malatya Training and Research Hospital, Malatya, Turkey
Zarife Gok ; Department of Ophthalmology, Turgut Ozal University, Malatya Training and Research Hospital, Malatya, Turkey
Nurcan Berber ; Department of Chest Diseases, Turgut Ozal University, Malatya Training and Research Hospital, Malatya, Turkey
Serdar Derya ; ⁶Department of Traumatology and Emergency Medicine, Turgut Ozal University, Malatya Training and Research Hospital, Malatya, Turkey
Bora Tetik ; Department of Neurosurgery, Inonu University School of Medicine, Malatya, Turkey

Abstract

Background: The novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has a broad spectrum of clinical
manifestations, the most common serious clinical manifestation of the coronavirus infection being pneumonia.
Unfortunately, the optimal treatment approach is still uncertain. However, many studies have been conducted
on the effectiveness of several medications in the treatment of COVID-19 infection. The aim of this study was
to evaluate the effectiveness of the hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) + favipiravir (FAV) treatment regimen and HCQ
alone by comparing the patient’s clinical response and laboratory results on the fifth day of treatment in patients
hospitalized due to COVID-19 infection.
Patients and methods: This retrospective cohort study was conducted in Malatya Training and Research Hospital
between March 2020 and July 2020. The study included 69 patients with confirmed COVID-19 with pneumonia. The
patients were divided into 2 groups, those receiving HCQ alone and those receiving the HCQ + FAV combination.
Results: A total of 69 patients were included in the study, and the mean age was 60.09±15.56 years. A statistically
significant decrease was observed in C-reactive protein (CRP) levels, at the end of the fifth day, in patients who
received HCQ + FAV treatment (p=0.002), whereas there was no decrease in CRP levels in patients who received
HCQ treatment alone. In addition, an increase in lymphocyte count and a better fever response was observed at the
end of the fifth day in patients who received HCQ + FAV (p=0.008). However, there was no statistical difference
between both treatment regimens in terms of hospital stay and treatment results (p=0.008, p=0.744, p=0.517).
Conclusion: Although the combination of HCQ + FAV treatment was observed to be effective on CRP levels and
fever response in patients with COVID-19 pneumonia, there was no difference in terms of hospital stay and discharge.

Keywords

Favipiravir; Hydroxychloroquine; COVID-19; SARS-COV-2; Pneumonia

Hrčak ID:

296069

URI

https://hrcak.srce.hr/296069

Publication date:

1.11.2022.

Article data in other languages: croatian

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