Centers, Patients and Definitions
We hereafter will describe centers according to the treatment protocol instead of the center name. Specifically, the center administering lopinavir plus doxycycline is referred to as “Lop/Dox,” and that administering a range of treatment protocols approved by the Health Ministry is referred to as “Others.”
Cases were patients >18 years old who were hospitalized and found positive for the novel SARS-CoV-2 RNA following nasopharyngeal swab testing using RT-PCR. The Lop/Dox cohort consisted of moderate to severe patients, since mild patients were home isolated with a different treatment protocol. The Others cohort included more mild cases, as well as moderate to severe cases.
Study covariates included age (years), gender, lymphocyte count, white blood cell count, body temperature (°C) at admission, O2saturation (%) at admission, respiration rate per minute at admission, the elapsed time between the onset of symptoms and hospitalization, history of hypertension, and ACE inhibitors usage. The study outcome measures are described below. We extracted all data from medical records.
FPV 600 mg, HCQ 200 mg, LPV 200 mg, and doxycycline 100 mg, all were administered twice daily via the PO route. Azithromycin was administered 250 mg PO once daily. For FVP, HCQ and azithromycin loading doses were given on the first day.
We analyzed the need for intubation as the primary outcome and in-hospital mortality as a secondary outcome. The need for intubation seems to be a more sensitive measure to compare the efficacy of the two antiviral drugs in this setting. This is because, following the intubation, patients are transferred to the ICU; hence, new modalities and risks appear.