Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has been spreading all over the world and becoming out of control.
In a short time, the world has shown a great increase in the number of cases, leaving people in fear of facing coronavirus outbreak, leaving them asking: when will this novel virus end, and is it possible to discover a new vaccine or treatment before causing other disasters.
As soon as we are scared of this virus, researchers are investigating several drugs and vaccines to find a coronavirus cure as soon as possible. Let us know more about coronavirus update treatment.
Treatment of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)
Treatment depends on the severity of symptoms: mild, moderate, or severe.
Coronavirus symptoms include:
- Cough
- Fever
- Shortness of breath
In more severe cases, the patient may suffer from:
- Pneumonia
- Severe acute respiratory syndrome
- Kidney failure
Symptomatic treatment
Symptomatic treatment is the first step in COVID-2019 viral infection, and it includes:
- Antipyretics to reduce fever
- Fluid resuscitation to prevent rehydration
- In severe cases, the patients may need a respirator or oxygen supplement.
Moreover, the following drugs have shown effectiveness in suppressing the replication of COVID-19:
Chloroquine
Chloroquine is antimalarial, besides its action in some types of autoimmune diseases.
But recent studies have shown that chloroquine inhibits COVID-19 replication in the test tubes.
So, further clinical trials have been investigating the effect of chloroquine on this virus.
Remdesivir
Remdesivir is a broad-spectrum antiviral, designed to treat Ebola.
Researchers have tested remdesivir on isolated cells of COVID-19, and it shows effectiveness in suppressing its replication.
Lopinavir and ritonavir (Kaletra)
Not only kaletra treats HIV (human immunodeficiency virus), but also it decreases the viral overload of coronavirus.
Favilavir
China has approved the use of favilavir (antiviral-drug). Favilavir reduces coronavirus symptoms: inflammation of the nose and throat.
About 70 clinical trials are now investigating the action of favilavir in treating the symptoms of COVID-19.
Teicoplanin
Teicoplanin is used to treat gram-positive bacterial infections, mainly staphylococcal infections.
Also, it is effective in treating various viral infections, such as influenza virus, Ebola, flavivirus, HIV, hepatitis C virus, and coronavirus (MERS-CoV and SAR-CoV).
Researches have studied the action of teicoplanin on coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), and it has shown a significant result in inhibiting the viral replication in vitro.
Teicoplanin prevents the release of viral RNA and stops the viral replication cycle. We encourage researchers to make more investigations on teicoplanin to use it as an alternative treatment in COVID-19.
In summary, we need further investigations to prove the efficacy of the above treatments in facing COVID-19. And until this moment, we should take our preventive measures to avoid further spreading of COVID-19.
