Antihistamines could relieve patients suffering from symptoms of Covid-19 several weeks or even months after infection.
- Antihistamines block the production of histamine, a substance that plays a major role in triggering allergic reactions.
- These drugs would have been effective in treating the sequelae of Covid-19 in two patients affected by the disease. They would have regained 90 to 95% of their capacities after taking this treatment.
Rhinitis, conjunctivitis, urticaria… These different conditions are soothed by antihistamines. These are allergy medications. According to scientists from the University of California at Irvine (United States), antihistamines would also have the ability to treat long Covid. This conclusion reached by the researchers was published in a study published in the journal The Journal for Nurse Practitioners February 7.
Antihistamines have been the subject of a case report
In this work, the authors described the cases of two women suffering from the sequelae of Covid-19 several months after infection. “Both patients report nearly complete recovery after administration of histamine antagonists,” can we read in the results. Both patients discovered, by chance, that antihistamines could improve their ability to carry out their daily activities.
According to the researchers, both women took these drugs to treat other conditions. The first patient, who had chest pain, headaches and a rash, had an allergic reaction to dairy products after eating cheese. The second, who suffered from purplish chilblains on her toes, joint and abdominal pain, had run out of tablets for her allergy. After taking antihistamines, the patients realized that they were less tired and noticed an improvement in their cognitive functions.
90 to 95% of faculties regained thanks to antihistamines
When the first patient stopped treatment for 72 hours, the symptoms reappeared. So she took the medicine again and was relieved again. Her doctor advised her to take a daily dose of antihistamine. According to the results, this treatment considerably attenuated his other sequelae of Covid-19. The patient declared that she had regained 90% of her capacities.
In the second case, the woman, who took an antihistamine, noted that her fatigue and cognitive abilities had improved since taking the drug. She continued to take it daily along with other allergy medications. The patient reported feeling better and regaining 95% of her faculties after taking the treatment.
“Currently there is no cure for long Covid, only symptom management. A number of options are being tested, antihistamines being one of them. “access and over-the-counter can relieve some of the lingering symptoms of Covid-19 should give hope to the estimated 54 million people around the world who have been in distress for months or even years,” said Melissa Pinto, author of the study in a statement. The scientists said the next step was to carry out larger-scale work to assess the effectiveness of antihistamines against long Covid.
Below, our program “C Notre Santé” with the testimony of a patient with long Covid:
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