French government authorizes chloroquine in Covid-19 treatments

[nicolas claris]

Source: https://www.liberation.fr/direct/el...ns-les-traitements-contre-le-covid-19_111339/

"Quick and dirty" translation:

Government authorizes chloroquine in Covid-19 treatments
Green light.
After days of controversy, the government finally allowed the use of chloroquine, a molecule used against malaria, to treat patients with the new coronavirus. This news was welcomed on Twitter by Didier Raoult, an infectious disease specialist from Marseilles, who is the promoter of this antidote and author of a study on the subject. He wanted to administer it without waiting for the results of the European clinical trial that has just been launched. This is now possible, under medical supervision and without limitation to "serious" cases.

In detail, the decree issued as part of the state of health emergency and published today states: "Hydroxychloroquine and the lopinavir/ritonavir combination may be prescribed, dispensed and administered under the responsibility of a doctor to patients affected by covid-19, in the health facilities that care for them, as well as, for the continuation of their treatment if their condition allows it and with the authorization of the initial prescriber, at home".

 

[Asher Kelman]

Source: https://www.liberation.fr/direct/el...ns-les-traitements-contre-le-covid-19_111339/

"Quick and dirty" translation:

Great news for the research, but let’s be cautious as in his study, I believe some 5 folk who went to the emergency room were not counted in the study.

I am not sure that the government has done more them permitting a separate institution expanding to a study that has big enough numbers and independant design to be “evidence”, one way or another. Certainly France can do this important research rapidly and in a way that will have international medical significance.

Asher

 

[Asher Kelman]

Unfortunately, as Forbes reports, a Chinese small, but seemingly thorough study fails to show benefit!

They mentioned 400 mg dose, which seems to refer to hydroxychloroquine instead.

Still we await the completion of larger controlled studies!


Asher

 

[Jerome Marot]

The study has been retracted:

Controversial COVID study that promoted unproven treatment retracted after four-year saga

Paper on hydroxychloroquine led by French researcher Didier Raoult is second-most-cited study ever to be withdrawn.

www.nature.com

 

[Asher Kelman]

The study has been retracted:

Controversial COVID study that promoted unproven treatment retracted after four-year saga

Paper on hydroxychloroquine led by French researcher Didier Raoult is second-most-cited study ever to be withdrawn.

www.nature.com

What’s apparent here is the lingering hope, researchers have that their destiny as a 21st Century Louis Pasteur is about to be revealed to the world. It’s a strong siren to lead mediocre scientists off course.

The problem here was the urgency of the need for a savior and with todays hyper rapid news spread, its publication distorted judgement in the highest echelons of officialdom.

What must be remembered is that we expect even well run studies to have false positive results with good statistic! This is part of the stochastic nature of measuring phenomena that have natural variance.

The greatest danger when the mistakenly optimistic clinical study is submitted by a prestigious source such as Harvard University or Guys Hospital in London, U.K., that the scientific journal wants to be the first to publish this good news.

However, publications with negative results from lesser institutions could face barriers of disbelief to publication. After all, who needs this negative study.

The latter becomes important as more negative studies pile up and an outcry grows in the public press humiliating the publishers!