Chloroquine South Africa has been trending ever since US President Donald Trump made mention of the anti-malaria drug on Thursday 19 March during a press briefing. Trump, with his group of specialists, suggested it be used to treat the deadly coronavirus.
Taking it back to South Africa…What we really want to know is: What is chloroquine? What was it initially used for? What are the side-effects? And will it be used in South Africa to combat the spread of the virus?
After all, finding a cure has become rather urgent after the total number of coronavirus infections in South Africa hit 202 on Friday 20 March.
Here’s why ‘Chloroquine South Africa’ has been trending
The novel coronavirus has in no uncertain terms brought everything to a screeching halt.
Besides it being a serious inconvenience, it’s also a life-threatening disease which has made many of us paranoid and fearful, even in our own homes.
Health Minister Zweli Mkhize also mentioned on Thursday that there is still no cure for coronavirus, which made us all a little more despondent and hopeless that this global pandemic will come to an end.
Therefore, when someone makes mention that a drug may be able to treat coronavirus, we listen and we listen intently — hence why “Chloroquine South Africa” topped the trends list.
We want to know when, where and how — anything to overcome this trying period.
What is chloroquine and what is it used for?
Chloroquine is a medication, in pill form, used to prevent and to treat malaria. It was first approved in the US in 1949.
Many, including engineer Elon Musk, has said that it saved their lives from Malaria.
Maybe worth considering chloroquine for C19 https://t.co/LEYob7Jofr
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 16, 2020
The drug can also be used for the treatment of amoebic liver abscess and rheumatic disease.
Others have said that the pill helped them not to contract malaria, however, caused some severe symtoms:
“I took chloroquine for five weeks about 10 years ago as anti-malaria prophylaxis when I was on a business trip to South Africa. It was recommended and provided by my org’s medical office. I had severe abdominal pains from it because it’s hard on the liver, but you recover once you stop.”
Twitter user
“On personal experience, I was on this drug which has bad side-effects. Chloroquine damages the liver and can damage your corneas and retinas. People that live in malarial areas of South Africa cannot take it long term due to liver damage. Maybe side-effects won’t be considered now! [due to coronavirus]”
Twitter user
What are the side effects?
At this stage, we’re not sure if chloroquine can kill off the coronavirus, but we can confirm that the symptoms are quite intense.
According to medlineplus.gov, the following symptoms can occur:
- Headache;
- Loss of appetite;
- Diarrhoea;
- Upset stomach;
- Stomach pain;
- Skin rash or itching;
- Hair loss; and
- Mood or mental changes.
Other symptoms that could occur:
- Blurred vision;
- Difficulty hearing;
- Ringing in ears;
- Muscle weakness;
- Drowsiness;
- Vomiting;
- Irregular heartbeats;
- Convulsions; and
- Difficulty breathing.
Will ‘Chloroquine South Africa’ become a thing?
Drug companies are delving into research projects to develop antibodies and other next-generation therapeutics to kill the coronavirus and chloroquine stands out as potentially simple, cheap, and scalable treatment.
The only problem is, it’s all talk for now. We haven’t yet seen data from any randomised clinical trials which, according to Business Insider, is the gold standard of medical research.
Didier Raoult, a prominent infectious-disease expert, is running a clinical trial in France to test a version of the drug called hydroxychloroquine on a few dozen patients with coronavirus. It’s one of many clinical studies going on around the world testing chloroquine or hydroxychloroquine.
Early reports of Raoult’s trial were positive, with Raoult saying chloroquine appeared to shorten the time that people with coronavirus are infectious.
Steven Seedhouse, a biotech analyst at Raymond James, said he recently analysed the early evidence for three top drugs being tested for coronavirus — remdesivir, chloroquine, and Kaletra, an HIV drug sold by AbbVie — and concluded that chloroquine was the most promising candidate.
Mkhize talks Chloroquine
During his briefing before the South African Medical Association, Health Minister Mkhize noted the clinical trials being conducted with Chloroquine as potential treatment for COVID-19, saying:
“People have spoken about anti-viral treatment and Chloroquine etcetera. We are aware that there’s a whole lot of trials that are going on including issues of vaccine which we need to be upfront say at the moment there is no vaccine available.”
What the early research says
In January 2020, Chinese researchers confirmed that Chloroquine was being put to the medical test, noting “fairly good inhibitory effects”. Preliminary results have shown that Chloroquine may be effective in the treatment of coronavirus-related pneumonia.
The Guangdong Provincial Department of Science and Technology, along with the Provincial Health Commission, reported that Chloroquine “improves the success rate of treatment” associated with COVID-19 and went as far as recommending its use for patients afflicted with coronavirus pneumonia.
However, Chloroquine has not been approved by the FDA to treat the coronavirus and, furthermore, the drug has been known for contraindications for people with heart disease or diabetes.
Despite the controversy and warnings from medical experts, President Trump recently remarked:
Source: The South African Read More“It’s shown very encouraging — very, very encouraging early results. And we’re going to be able to make that drug available almost immediately.”
