COVID-19: well-known drugs, new opportunities

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UDC: 
614.40: 615.7
Authors: 

A.Kh. Ashirmetov1, I.R. Mavlyanov2, Z.I. Mavlyanov2, G.Zh. Zharylkasynova3

Organization: 

1Uzbekistan’s Public Healthcare Ministry, 26 Spitamena Str., Tashkent, 100121, Uzbekistan
2Tashkent Institute for Post-Graduate Medical Education, 12 Sharafa Ave., Tashkent, 100000, Uzbekistan
3Bukhara State Medical Institute named after Abu Ali ibn Sino, 1 Navoi Ave., Bukhara, 200118, Uzbekistan

Abstract: 

Up to now, coronavirus infection that causes an acute respiratory syndrome has been detected almost in all countries worldwide. Global spread of SARS-CoV-2 virus has become a world pandemic and there is no efficient and commonly accepted conventional therapy against COVID-19. Due to the existing emergency most drugs that can potentially be used to treat COVID-19 are allowed to be applied only basing on certain data probing their safety and efficiency against SARS-CoV. At present only Lopinavir/Ritonavir and Remdesivir are the only anti-virus drugs that are included into well-recognized management procedures for COVID-19 treatment; an acceptable alternative could probably be combined therapy that includes Hydroxychloroquine and Azithromycin. Given the existing situation, a lot of drugs that are usually used to treat other diseases are now being suggested as probable ways to treat COVID-19 taking into account all the available knowledge on pathophysiology of the infection.
In this review, basing on available data on how SARA-CoV-2 virus enters a cell and pathophysiological aspects of cytokine storm development, we have strived to highlight certain prospects related to applying anti-viral medications, anti-inflammatory and immune-suppressing drugs, vitamins and microelements that are widely used to treat and prevent various diseases. Most tested drugs as well as zinc preparations, and vitamins С and D3 turned out to have not only immune-modulating but also anti-inflammatory properties; or either they were able to block ways for the virus to enter a cell or disrupt SARS-CoV-2 intracellular replication.
Having leant from previous experience in fighting against SARS and MERS, doctors have applied some existing drugs to treat COVID-19 infections in their clinical practices; clinical tests aimed at confirming their safety and efficiency in treating COVID-19 are still being performed at the moment. Although a lot of various treatment procedures have been suggested, it is necessary to perform specifically planned randomized clinical trials based on evidence-based medicine principles, if we want to determine the most suitable ones.

Keywords: 
coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19, anti-viral medications, immune-modulating drugs, anti-inflammatory drugs, medications, clinical tests
Ashirmetov A.Kh., Mavlyanov I.R., Mavlyanov Z.I., Zharylkasynova G.Zh. COVID-19: well-known drugs, new opportunities. Health Risk Analysis, 2020, no. 4, pp. 170–180. DOI: 10.21668/health.risk/2020.4.19.eng
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Received: 
30.05.2020
Accepted: 
11.11.2020
Published: 
30.12.2020

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