The World Health Organization announced on Wednesday that is is ending hydroxychloroquine trials on patients with the novel coronavirus COVID-19.
Medical officer in the WHO’s Department of Immunization Vaccines and Biologicals Ana María Henao-Restrepo said that trials of the drug have already been halted in many countries after experiments showed no benefit from using it in the treatment of coronavirus.
US President Donald Trump’s touting of the benefits of hydroxychloroquine as a possible treatment for the coronavirus had raised hopes about the drug, but conflicting reports have increasingly raised concerns about its efficacy.
Although the drug has already been used for decades to treat malaria, the WHO’s trials appear to demonstrate that it will not prove useful in treating COVID-19.
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Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm
Image: A man wearing a mask is seen at the Shanghai railway station in Shanghai, China, as the country is hit by an outbreak of the novel coronavirus, February 12, 2020. (REUTERS/Aly Song/File Photo)
