Sarah Chapman and Selena Ryan-Vig highlight Cochrane evidenceCochrane Reviews are systematic reviews. In systematic reviews we search for and summarize studies that answer a specific research question (e.g. is paracetamol effective and safe for treating back pain?). The studies are identified, assessed, and summarized by using a systematic and predefined approach. They inform recommendations for healthcare and research. on treatments that have been investigated for people with mild COVID-19.
The blog will be kept up to date with the most recent version of each Cochrane ReviewCochrane Reviews are systematic reviews. In systematic reviews we search for and summarize studies that answer a specific research question (e.g. is paracetamol effective and safe for treating back pain?). The studies are identified, assessed, and summarized by using a systematic and predefined approach. They inform recommendations for healthcare and research.. This is a fast-moving field. You can view NICE’s rapid guideline on managing COVID-19 for the latest information about treating COVID in the UK. You can also view the living guideline by topic area.
You can either scroll through this page or click on any of the links below to jump to the relevant section. You can also read our blog on treatments for moderate to severe COVID-19: Cochrane evidence.
Page last updated: 24 June 2022, to include new evidence on ivermectin.
- Antibiotics (Azithromycin)
- Colchicine
- Convalescent plasma
- Inhaled corticosteroids
- Ivermectin
- Monoclonal antibodies
- Vitamin D supplementation
.
Antibiotics (Azithromycin)
Key messages
- For people with mild COVID-19, treated as outpatients, azithromycin may have little to no benefit.
- The evidence about possible serious harms is uncertain.
- There is not enough information about possible mild side effects, heart rhythm problems, or quality of life.
The evidence
The evidence comes from the Cochrane Review Antibiotics for the treatment of COVID‐19 (published October 2021). Four studies compared antibiotics with placeboAn intervention that appears to be the same as that which is being assessed but does not have the active component. For example, a placebo could be a tablet made of sugar, compared with a tablet containing a medicine. (a dummy treatmentSomething done with the aim of improving health or relieving suffering. For example, medicines, surgery, psychological and physical therapies, diet and exercise changes. that looks the same as the medicine but lacks the active ingredient), standard care alone or another antibiotic in people with mild COVID-19. Seven other studies looked at people with moderate-to-severe COVID-19. (Read more: Treatments for moderate to severe COVID-19: Cochrane evidence). Azithromycin was the only antibiotic investigated so we do not know the effects of other antibiotics for treating COVID-19.
Potential relevance of this treatment for COVID-19
Antibiotics are cheap medicines, widely used to treat bacterial infections. Antibiotics have been studied as a potential treatment for COVID-19. This is because some laboratory studies have suggested that some antibiotics slow the reproduction of certain viruses, including SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. There has been particular interest in one antibiotic, azithromycin, as some laboratory studies have indicated it may reduce inflammation and viral activity. But we need good evidence before using antibiotics for COVID-19. This is because overuse and/or misuse of antibiotics can lead to ‘antimicrobial resistance’ where, ultimately, antibiotics stop working.
Find out more
- Cochrane Clinical Answer: For adults with asymptomatic or mild COVID‐19, what are the effects of azithromycin?
Colchicine
Key message
In non‐hospitalised people with no symptoms or mild COVID‐19, it is uncertain whether colchicine prevents deaths or side effects. However, it probably slightly reduces the riskA way of expressing the chance of an event taking place, expressed as the number of events divided by the total number of observations or people. It can be stated as ‘the chance of falling were one in four’ (1/4 = 25%). This measure is good no matter the incidence of events i.e. common or infrequent. of hospitalisation and serious side effects.
The evidence
The evidence comes from the Cochrane Review Colchicine for the treatment of COVID‐19 (published October 2021). It includes four studies (three with 11,525 hospitalised people and one with 4488 non‐hospitalised people). The studyAn investigation of a healthcare problem. There are different types of studies used to answer research questions, for example randomised controlled trials or observational studies. in non-hospitalised people compared colchicine to placebo or standard care alone. There are many ongoing studies that may help give a clearer answer about the possible benefits and harms of colchicine. The reviewers are searching for new evidence on a weekly basis and will update the review when they identify new, relevant evidence.
Potential relevance of this treatment for COVID-19
Colchicine is an anti‐inflammatory drug used to reduce swelling and inflammation. It is often used to treat gout, a condition where people’s joints become painful and swollen. Researchers are interested in colchicine as a possible COVID-19 treatment as it might help reduce inflammation caused by COVID-19. It is also important to know about its possible side effects, as it is known that colchicine may be harmful to people with certain health conditions, such as kidney or liver problems, or if you take too much of it.
Find out more
- Cochrane Clinical Answer: What are the effects of colchicine for treatment of asymptomatic or mild COVID‐19?
Convalescent plasma
Key message
The effects of convalescent plasma on people with mild COVID‐19 are uncertain.
The evidence
The evidence is from a Cochrane Review Convalescent plasma or hyperimmune immunoglobulin for people with COVID‐19: a living systematic review (last updated May 2021). For people with mild COVID-19 illness, there was just one small study (160 people) to include in the review. There is reliable evidence from 12 studies on people with moderate-to severe COVID-19. (Read more: Treatments for moderate to severe COVID-19: Cochrane evidence).
Potential relevance of this treatment for COVID-19
People who have recovered from a viral infection carry virus-specific antibodies in their blood plasma. Convalescent plasma (plasma from people who have recovered from the viral infection) has been used effectively to treat some treat viral infections. This has led some researchers to consider convalescent plasma as a potential treatment for COVID-19.
Find out more
- Evidently Cochrane blog: Convalescent plasma to treat people with COVID-19: the evidence so far
- Review author interview: Updated Cochrane living review investigates the use of convalescent plasma to treat people with COVID-19
- Cochrane Podcast: Is plasma from people who have recovered from COVID-19 an effective treatment for people with COVID-19?
Inhaled corticosteroids
Key message
For people with mild COVID-19 infection, compared with usual care or placebo, inhaled corticosteroids (budesonide or ciclesonide):
- probably reduce the risk of admission to hospital or of dying up to day 30
- probably increase the likelihood that COVID‐19 symptoms will have gone by day 14 and may shorten the time it takes for symptoms to go away
- may make little to no difference to death from any cause up to day 30
- may make little to no difference to the number of any unwanted effects or additional infections
The evidence is very uncertain potential serious harms of inhaled corticosteroids.
The evidence
The evidence comes from the Cochrane Review Inhaled corticosteroids for the treatment of COVID‐19 (published March 2022). It includes three studies with 3607 people, of whom 2490 had confirmed mild COVID-19. Most were aged over 50 and had other health problems such as lung disease or high blood pressure. The studies took place in high income countries before wide-scale COVID-19 vaccination programmes. The inhaled steroids used in the studies were budesonide and ciclesonide, compared with placebo or usual care.
The review authors found no dataData is the information collected through research. for people without symptoms and no studies of this treatment in people with moderate to severe COVID-19.
Potential relevance of this treatment for COVID-19
Inhaled corticosteroids are medicines that are breathed into the lower airways through an inhaler where they reduce inflammation in the lungs. They are used to treat inflammatory respiratory conditions like asthma and chronicA health condition marked by long duration, by frequent recurrence over a long time, and often by slowly progressing seriousness. For example, rheumatoid arthritis. obstructive pulmonary disease. They might have the potential to reduce the risk of severe COVID‐19 illness.
Find out more
- Cochrane Clinical Answer: For people with mild COVID‐19, what are the effects of inhaled corticosteroids?
- COVID-NMA living data: COVID-NMA. Pharmacologic treatments for COVID-19 patients: Corticosteroids
- Related NICE COVID-19 living guideline: Corticosteroids
- Related World Health Organization living guidance:
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- Corticosteroids for COVID-19: living guidance
- Therapeutics and COVID-19: living guideline
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Ivermectin
Key message
“We found no evidence to support the use of ivermectin for treating COVID‐19 or preventing SARS‐CoV‐2 infection. The evidence base improved slightly in this update, but is still limited.”
The evidence
The evidence comes from the Cochrane Review Ivermectin for preventing and treating COVID‐19 (updated June 2022). It includes 11 trialsClinical trials are research studies involving people who use healthcare services. They often compare a new or different treatment with the best treatment currently available. This is to test whether the new or different treatment is safe, effective and any better than what is currently used. No matter how promising a new treatment may appear during tests in a laboratory, it must go through clinical trials before its benefits and risks can really be known. with 3409 participants investigating ivermectin plus standard of care compared to standard of care plus/minus placebo. The review authors excluded seven trials that were in the previous version of the review (not prospectively registered or non-randomisedA non-randomised study is any quantitative study estimating the effectiveness of an intervention (harm or benefit) that does not use randomisation to allocate people to comparison groups.) and included four new ones.
The review authors conclude:
“For outpatients, there is currently low‐ to high‐certainty evidence that ivermectin has no beneficial effect for people with COVID‐19.” They also say “In this update, certainty of evidenceThe certainty (or quality) of evidence is the extent to which we can be confident that what the research tells us about a particular treatment effect is likely to be accurate. Concerns about factors such as bias can reduce the certainty of the evidence. Evidence may be of high certainty; moderate certainty; low certainty or very-low certainty. Cochrane has adopted the GRADE approach (Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation) for assessing certainty (or quality) of evidence. Find out more here: https://training.cochrane.org/grade-approach increased through higher quality trials including more participants. According to this review’s living approach, we will continually update our search.”
Potential relevance of this treatment for COVID-19
Ivermectin, a medicine used to treat parasites, has been found in laboratory tests to slow the reproduction of the COVID-19 (SARS-CoV-2) virus, but very big doses would be needed in humans to have this effect.
Monoclonal antibodies
Key message
“…current evidence is insufficient to draw meaningful conclusions” about whether monoclonal antibodies are an effective and safe treatment for COVID-19.
The evidence
This evidence comes from the Cochrane Review SARS‐CoV‐2‐neutralising monoclonal antibodies for treatment of COVID‐19 (published September 2021). There were four studies with people with COVID-19 who were not in hospital, and two studies with hospitalised people. Commenting on the evidence gap, the review authors also noted that there are 36 ongoing studies which they hope will address these uncertainties.
Potential relevance of this treatment for COVID-19
Antibodies are made by the body as a defence against disease. They can also be produced in a laboratory, from cells taken from people who have recovered from a disease.
Antibodies that are designed to target only one specific protein – in this case, a protein on the virus that causes COVID‐19 – are ‘monoclonal’. They attach to the COVID‐19 virus and stop it from entering and reproducing in human cells. This may help to fight the infection.
Find out more
- Cochrane Clinical Answer: For adults with asymptomatic or mild COVID‐19, what are the effects of SARS‐CoV‐2‐neutralising monoclonal antibodies (alone or combined)?
- Cochrane podcast: Are laboratory-made, COVID-19-specific monoclonal antibodies an effective treatment for COVID-19?
Vitamin D supplementation
Key message
The benefits and harms of vitamin D supplementation as a treatment of COVID‐19 are uncertain.
The evidence
The Cochrane Review on Vitamin D supplementation for the treatment of COVID‐19: a living systematic review (published May 2021) includes just three studies with 356 people with COVID-19 (including asymptomatic, mild, moderate and severe disease), comparing vitamin D supplementation with placebo or ‘standard care’. Only one of these studies looked at patients with mild illness and the study did not give any information about the outcomesOutcomes are measures of health (for example quality of life, pain, blood sugar levels) that can be used to assess the effectiveness and safety of a treatment or other intervention (for example a drug, surgery, or exercise). In research, the outcomes considered most important are ‘primary outcomes’ and those considered less important are ‘secondary outcomes’. of interest (such as effects on patients’ condition, or possible side effects).
The authors found 21 ongoing studies and three completed studies without published results, so their findings are likely to change when the review is updated.
Potential relevance of this treatment for COVID-19
The review authors explain: “Vitamin D is important for healthy bones, teeth and muscles. It helps to regulate blood sugar, the heart and blood vessels, and the lungs and airways. It also has a role in boosting the body’s immune system. These are areas affected by COVID‐19, so giving vitamin D to people with COVID‐19 might help them to recover more quickly or have the disease less severely.”
Find out more
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Sarah Chapman and Selena Ryan-Vig have nothing to disclose.
