Hydroxychloroquine for Covid-19: Conclusions of 3 New Meta-Analyses
And, apparently, this controversial drug still has two potential uses in this pandemic [updated 1/10/2020].
Published in
9 min readSep 6, 2020
Hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) or chloroquine (CQ) is used to treat malaria and autoimmune diseases such as lupus and rheumatoid arthritis. HCQ is modified from CQ to increase its solubility in water, so it tends not to concentrate in tissues. HCQ is, thus, safer than CQ with lower toxicity to the kidneys and eyes.
HCQ has been highly politicized in the U.S as a treatment for Covid-19, earning its name as the most controversial drug to date. HCQ is also among the top studied drugs in Covid-19. But studies after studies continue to give conflicting findings. Fortunately, there are a few published meta-analyses in August that answer a few ambiguities about HCQ.
