HCQ can be fatal, warn medical experts

May 06, 2020 17:38

As countries around the world explore the potential of hydroxychloroquine to treat COVID-19 patients, several experts have sounded a note of warning to say it is not a wonder drug and may even be fatal in some cases. While frantic efforts are underway to develop a vaccine and doctors all over try and control the spread of the disease for which there is yet no cure, hydroxychloroquine, or HCQ, has emerged as a prime focus area of treatment. This reliance on HCQ must immediately stop, the experts say, adding their voices to the growing debate to stress that there is no scientific evidence to prove that it is beneficial in treating COVID-19.

"It is only on anecdotal evidence that doctors are using HCQ along with other antiviral medication (used in HIV and other viral infections) as empiric therapy to treat COVID-19 patients as there is no definite treatment available yet," said MC Misra, former director of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences in Delhi and one of India's top surgeons.

"However, there have been reports of some patients developing cardiac arrhythmias due to hydroxychloroquine which can cause sudden cardiac death," Misra told PTI.

Yudhyavir Singh, a core member of AIIMS' COVID-19 team deployed at the hospital's trauma centre, agreed.

"Globally, some deaths have been reported due to the administration of HCQ alone and along with azithromycin as well. HCQ blocks the potassium channel and potentially prolongs the QTc (heartbeat) with consequences of sudden cardiac arrest death and various arrhythmias. This has also been documented in prominent studies,' he explained. The assistant professor of anaesthesia at AIIMS said there are contradictory reports on HCQ usage for treating COVID-19. -- PTI

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