Have you ever heard of fluvoxamine? This medication (which is marketed under the name Froxyfral®) belongs to the antidepressant family: it is prescribed in particular against major depressive episodes and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), and is produced by the Mylan laboratory.
Does fluvoxamine have an interest against Covid-19? This is the question asked by researchers in the Together clinical trial, jointly conducted by Canada, Brazil and the United States. The objective of the Together trial is to determine whether commonly prescribed drugs (such as fluvoxamine, or hydroxychloroquine) could be used against infection with the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus.
Fluvoxamine would reduce hospitalization time in case of Covid-19
And to date, fluvoxamine shows encouraging results: according to work published at the end of October 2021 by scientists at Together in the specialized journal Lancet Global Health, this antidepressant would decrease the risk of developing a severe form of Covid-19.
In detail, the researchers worked with 1,500 volunteers aged 50 on average (including 58% of women), all patients with Covid-19 and presenting (at least) a comorbidity exposing them to an increased risk of severe form of the disease. sickness. The volunteers (all hospitalized in Brazil, in 11 different hospitals) were divided into two groups: group 1 was treated with fluvoxamine (100 mg twice a day for 10 days) while group 2 was treated with a placebo.
Results ? Among the participants in group 1, 79 people out of 741 (or 11%) stayed more than 6 hours in a Covid-19 unit in the hospital, compared to 119 people out of 756 (16%) for the placebo group. The researchers therefore conclude that fluvoxamine could reduce the risk of prolonged hospitalization after infection with the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus by approximately 32%. Scientists also believe that fluvoxamine could reduce the risk of death from Covid-19. Further studies are now needed to confirm these encouraging results.
Read also :
- Tinnitus: Covid-19 could affect the inner ear
- Molnupiravir: will the anti-Covid pill soon be available in France?
- Covid-long: 9 ways to relieve it without drugs
