BR: After months of testing, drug Nitazoxanide shows effectiveness in reducing Covid-19 viral load

Result of the clinical trial reveals that the use of the vermifuge drug in the early stages can reduce the severity of the disease

Clinical study has scientifically proven the efficacy of the drug Nitazoxanide in reducing viral load in the early phase of Covid-19 - Photo: Alan Santos / PR

Oct 20, Brazil: A clinical study has scientifically proven the effectiveness of the drug Nitazoxanide in reducing viral load in the early phase of Covid-19. The reduction in viral load implies less serious disease and less transmissibility of the virus. The results of the studies were released on Monday (19) by the Ministry of Science,

Technology and Innovations (MCTI) in a ceremony at the Planalto Palace.

“Advantages of this medicine, it is a low cost, it has no serious side effects, it can be used safely. It cannot be used for prevention, only after the virus has been detected. We now have a tool that the Ministry of Health can use to help save lives, ”said Minister of Science, Technology and Innovations, Marcos Pontes.

Pontes explained that, in February, the RedeVirus MCTI was created with researchers and scientists to provide guidelines for combating Covid-19. One of them was the search for a replacement medicine, that is, a medicine that already exists in the pharmacy to treat another disease.

“It has been a tireless job of scientists, since February, testing two thousand drugs, artificial intelligence, using mathematical modelling, computer graphics, five thousand of these two thousand were chosen for laboratory tests. Of the five, Nitazoxanide showed a 94% capacity to inhibit the virus, so it went to clinical tests, ”reported Pontes.

Researcher at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Patricia Rocco, conducted the clinical study with patients diagnosed with Covid-19 in the early stage of the disease and said that it is the role of doctors and scientists to work to contain the spread of the virus.

“This result is extremely important since Nitazoxanide is a medication that is widely distributed throughout the country and can be used orally, without requiring hospitalization. At the dose used, there are no serious adverse reactions. The reduction in viral load implies less severity, less transmissibility of the virus ”, he said.

Volunteers

To attract volunteers more quickly and speed up the return of the research results, the MCTI carried out the # 500Voluntários campaign with dissemination actions in the cities where the protocol was carried out.

A total of 1,575 volunteers were admitted. The study took place in the state of São Paulo, in hospitals in São Caetano do Sul, Barueri, Guarulhos, Bauru and Sorocaba; in Minas Gerais, in the city of Juiz de Fora; and in the Federal District, in Ceilândia.

The volunteers needed to have initial flu symptoms, such as fever, cough and fatigue. They were then tested for the new coronavirus and if so, they received the medicines to take at home, they were monitored by the medical team for days, and then they returned for further tests.