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21:09 GMT
GENEVA, May 25 (KUNA) -- The World Health Organisation has suspended coronavirus vaccine trials for the antimalarial drug, hydroxychloroquine, saying results have so far shown a higher mortality rate amongst patients.
Quoting findings published in medical journal, The Lancet, WHO chief Tedros Ghebreyesus said "the authors reported that among patients receiving the drug, when used alone or with a macrolide, they estimated a higher mortality rate.
"The (WHO) Executive Group has implemented a temporary pause of the hydroxychloroquine arm within the Solidarity Trial while the safety data is reviewed by the Data Safety Monitoring Board," he said.
In the study, researchers compared the outcomes of 15,000 COVID-19 patients who took the drug, used to treat malaria, lupus and rheumatoid arthritis.
"We were unable to confirm a benefit of hydroxychloroquine or chloroquine, when used alone or with (an antibiotic)," said the authors of the study, carried out by 671 hospitals on six continents.
"What's more, the patients who got the drugs were more likely than the others to die in the hospital," they added. (end)
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