Comparing the impact of Hydroxychloroquine based regimens and standard treatment on COVID-19 patient outcomes: A retrospective cohort study
Almazrou et al.,
Comparing the impact of Hydroxychloroquine based regimens and standard treatment on COVID-19 patient outcomes:..,
Saudi Pharmaceutical Journal, doi:10.1016/j.jsps.2020.09.019
Retrospective 161 hospitalized patients in Saudi Arabia showing lower ventilation and ICU admission with HCQ, but not statistically significant with the small sample sizes.
risk of mechanical ventilation, 65.0% lower, RR 0.35, p = 0.16, treatment 3 of 95 (3.2%), control 6 of 66 (9.1%), NNT 17.
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risk of ICU admission, 21.0% lower, RR 0.79, p = 0.78, treatment 8 of 95 (8.4%), control 7 of 66 (10.6%), NNT 46.
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Effect extraction follows pre-specified rules prioritizing more serious outcomes. Submit updates
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Almazrou et al., 1 Oct 2020, retrospective, Saudi Arabia, peer-reviewed, 5 authors.
Abstract: Saudi Pharmaceutical Journal 28 (2020) 1877–1882
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Original article
Comparing the impact of Hydroxychloroquine based regimens and
standard treatment on COVID-19 patient outcomes: A retrospective
cohort study
Saja H. Almazrou a,⇑, Ziyad S. Almalki b, Abdullah S. Alanazi c, Abdulhadi M. Alqahtani d, Saleh M. Alghamd d
a
Clinical Pharmacy Department, College of Pharmacy, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Clinical Pharmacy Department, College of Pharmacy, Prince Sattam bin Abdulaziz University, Al-Kharj, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Clinical Pharmacy Department, College of Pharmacy, Jouf University, Al-Jouf, Saudi Arabia
d
Clinical Research Department, Research Center, King Fahad Medical City, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
b
c
a r t i c l e
i n f o
Article history:
Received 4 July 2020
Accepted 27 September 2020
Available online 01 October 2020
Keywords:
Hydroxychloroquine
Coronavirus disease
COVID-19
Saudi Arabia
Cohort study
a b s t r a c t
Background: Pharmacological treatments including antivirals (Lopinavir/Ritonavir), Immuno-modulatory
and anti-inflammatory drugs including, Tocilizumab and Hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) has been widely
investigated as a treatment for COVID-19.
Despite the ongoing controversies, HCQ was recommended for managing mild to moderate cases in
Saudi Arabia . However, to our knowledge, no previous studies have been conducted in Saudi Arabia to
assess its effectiveness.
Methods: A hospital-based retrospective cohort study involving 161 patients with COVID-19 was conducted from March 1 to May 20, 2020. The study was conducted at Prince Mohammed bin Abdul Aziz
Hospital (PMAH).
The population included hospitalized adults (age 18 years) with laboratory-confirmed COVID-19.
Each eligible patient was followed from the time of admission until the time of discharge. Patients were
classified into two groups according to treatment type: in the HCQ group, patients were treated with
HCQ; in the SC group, patients were treated with other antiviral or antibacterial treatments according
to Ministry of Health (MOH) protocols.
The outcomes were hospitalization days, ICU admission, and the need for mechanical ventilation.
We estimated the differences in hospital length of stay and time in the ICU between the HCQ group and
the standard care (SC) group using a multivariate generalized linear regression. The differences in ICU
admission and mechanical ventilation were compared via logistic regression. All models were adjusted
for age and gender variables.
Results: A total of 161 patients fulfilled the inclusion criteria. Approximately 59% (n = 95) received HCQbased treatment, and 41% (n = 66) received SC. Length of hospital stay and time in ICU in for patients who
received HCQ based treatment was shorter than those who received SC. Similarly, there was less need for
ICU admission and mechanical ventilation among patients who received HCQ based treatment compared
with SC, (8.6% vs. 10.7 and 3.1% vs. 9.1%). However, the regression analysis showed no significant difference between the two groups in terms of patient outcomes.
Conclusion: HCQ had a modest effect on hospital length stay and days in ICU compared with SC.
However, these results need to be interpreted with caution. Larger observational studies and
Abbreviations: COVID-19, Coronavirus Disease 2019; HCQ, Hydroxychloroquine; HESN, Health Electronic Surveillance Network;..
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