(independantexpress.net)
Chloroquine, a molecule once used in the treatment of malaria, would now be effective in treating the new Coronavirus (covid19). The World Health Organization announced a program of international clinical trials to develop a cure for COVID-19 on Wednesday, March 18. Donald Trump's tweet and the testimony of some medical experts reinforce this hypothesis. A piece of the tunnel is marred by controversy.
Since the end of February, speculation has been raised about a possible treatment with chloroquine-based covid-19. Indeed, Professor Didier Raoult, head of the Mediterranean Hospital-University Institute Infection in Marseille, affirmed in a video the end of the epidemic thanks to chloroquine.
On March 20, U.S. President Donald Trump supported this hypothesis by stating that hydroxychloroquine-associated chloroquine would be effective in the treatment of coronavirus and that the simultaneous use of these two products would allow to eradicate this pandemic.
This possibility becomes even more convincing with the chloroquine experiment carried out by the Marseille professor Didier Raoult, in France, on his patients. He said he treated 24 patients with covid-19 and that six days later, only a quarter still had symptoms of the disease, compared to 90% of those who did not take chloroquine.
The chloroquine treatment has also been tested by Iran, South Korea, and China and the results are rather encouraging. China, the first country affected by the virus, already has no new cases of contamination, as is Iran, where the situation is stabilizing.
The covid-19, in its expansion, now affects almost all the countries of West Africa. This possibility of healing through chloroquine was therefore seen as a glimmer of hope. Many countries have not hesitated to source them for care.
Alliance Togo Informatique
Our neighbours next door, the Beninese, are satisfied. Benin Health Minister Benjamin Hounkpantin has declared the cure for both cases of the virus with chloroquine.
However, its use is not unanimous because it would not be 100% effective.
In Switzerland, for example, the chief medical officer of the clinical pharmacology department at the CHUV found that there appears to be "a signal in favour of efficacy, but the data are currently lacking". He adds, "There are no clinical data yet in terms of survival or length of hospital stay. So be careful, especially no untimely optimism at this point.
Thus, doctors who use chloroquine in Switzerland express skepticism about the effectiveness of the treatments used.
In Nigeria, the authorities are warning the population against self-medication. Two people were hospitalized for chloroquine overdose. The authorities call on the public to be more careful and to respect the barrier gestures (washing their hands regularly, disinfecting them, sneezing or coughing in the hollow of the elbow etc.
In Togo, the demand for chloroquine has skyrocketed according to a pharmacist quoted by Togo web "personally I do not hear and what I advise Togolese is to avoid self-medication at all costs. At this stage, scientists are not yet sure of the drug's effectiveness; we must give priority to the barrier gestures that are required." Togo has also 23 confirmed cases and one cured case to date. Fear is growing among Togolese, especially as hospitals are sorely lacking adequate equipment to cope with the pandemic.
At the latest news, a potentially more advanced treatment than chloroquine would be being tested. This is the Remdesivir. Remdesivir, which is an experimental antiviral developed by Gilead Sciences initially to treat Ebola virus disease and Marburg virus infections. According to Le Monde and Parisien, this is one of the main avenues against coronavirus and "potentially advanced treatment".
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Diane OLOBI
