In a race to find medicines that can tame the coronavirus and treat patients with COVID-19, researchers are scouring the formulary of available drugs and chemical compounds in hopes of finding something they could put to work immediately.
As a result, dozens of existing medicines have been waved through to clinical trials in record time. In roughly six weeks, the federal government's running tally of registered clinical trials for COVID-19 treatments has swelled to 217. An additional 916 clinical trials of prospective coronavirus treatments have been proposed in other countries.
Remdesivir, a medication originally developed for Ebola, made news this week after clinical trial results showed it could shorten the recovery time for hospitalized COVID-19 patients by 31%. Dr. Anthony Fauci, head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said it was the first proof "that a drug can block this virus."
But it will take much more than that to build up a reliable arsenal of treatments that includes options for patients at all stages of the disease, and with symptoms ranging from mild to life-threatening. So the trials will continue.
Some of the drugs being tested aim to protect lungs that are under assault from the coronavirus. Some would disrupt the virus' entry into our cells, or stop it from replicating once inside. A few would aid the immune system's initial response to coronavirus infection, and many more might help by tamping down the immune system when it goes into overdrive, a condition that is killing some critically ill COVID-19 patients.
More than 20,000 prescription medicines have received the Food and Drug Administration's blessing to be marketed in the U.S., so there are plenty of candidates to consider. Here's a look at the treatments that might have a second life as coronavirus combatants, and why they seem promising.
In a serious case of COVID-19, the coronavirus reaches the lungs and causes acute respiratory distress. So looking for drugs that can protect the lungs is a no-brainer.
Researchers in the U.S. and Israel will be testing aviptadil, a component of the erectile dysfunction drug Procivni. Aviptadil is a synthetic form of human vasoactive intestinal polypeptide, which is highly concentrated in the lungs. It protects them from injury and prevents inflammation, and in laboratory animals it's been shown to repair leakiness between the lungs' tiny air sacs and the small blood vessels where the oxygen is transferred to the blood.
Vitamin C infusions have emerged as an effective way to protect the lungs from acute injury, as well as a powerful treatment for sepsis. Researchers in Virginia will test a three-day regimen of vitamin C infusions to see whether they prevent lung injury in seriously ill COVID-19 patients.
In New Orleans and New York, two cities hit hard by the coronavirus, researchers will test hyperbaric oxygen therapy on 48 COVID-19 patients requiring breathing assistance. Delivered in a full-body oxygen chamber, the treatment is thought to increase the amount of dissolved oxygen in the blood and promote its delivery to delicate tissues throughout the body. It may also reduce the intensity of the immune system's inflammatory response and even kill the virus outright. Traditionally, the therapy has been used on scuba divers who get the bends if they surface too quickly; for COVID-19 patients, scientists hope it will reduce the time on _ and even the need for _ mechanical ventilation, and to prevent kidney damage.
