indica News Service
Hydroxychloroquine or HCQ is a much publicized drug after President Trump said that it may be a “game changer”as far as cure to coronavirus is concerned. There is no proven evidence though that this drug can completely cure a coronavirus patient and that with 100 percent certainty.
AIIMS Director, Dr Randeep Guleria has cautioned that Hydroxychloroquine cannot be a prescribed treatment for all and the drug can be harmful for the general public. He said:
“Hydroxychloroquine is not a magic bullet for Covid-19.”
Hydroxychloroquine or HCQ, an anti-malarial drug has emerged a popular drug for coronavirus treatment after the initial trial in China suggested that it boosted recovery of patients and it also lowered the severity of the coronavirus disease.
Dr. Guleria warned about the side-effects of the medicine:
“Hydroxychloroquine is not a treatment for everyone. It can have cardiac toxicity leading to irregular heartbeat, like any other drug, this also has side effects…… It can do more harm than good for the general public.”
The AIIMS doctor said that the data for HCQ as a treatment for Covid-19 is not strong, however since no other treatment was available so it was thought that this medicine can be used as a treatment for the Covid-19 patients.
Hydroxychloroquine combined with Azithromycin may be helpful in Covid-19 treatment for lack of other drugs or vaccines. ICMR has said that it won’t recommend HCQ for Covid-19 patients till the satisfactory results are seen during tests. As per ICMR, Hydroxychloroquine has been primarily recommended for asymptomatic healthcare workers who are actively taking care of the Covid-19 patients.
India produces nearly 70 per cent of the world’s HCQ. Recently it sent HCQ to various countries including the US.
