Misinformed and misleading
The HinduThe Health Ministry released its first COVID-19 management guidelines about a year ago. Policymakers should have waited for the final publication, worked with industry to scale-up production of budesonide, and bolstered supply chains till the final results came in, rather than hastily making recommendations that may trigger panic buying and a crisis for patients who actually need it. Lastly, absence of any mention of monoclonal antibodies from Regeneron or Eli Lilly in the guidelines, recommended by the National Institutes of Health, U.S., the most efficacious antivirals in COVID-19 till date, is baffling. With the available evidence, and keeping cost-effectiveness and the social relevance of the Indian health system in context, the focus of COVID-19 treatment guidelines should be on oxygen delivery, steroids and anti-coagulants. Anup Agarwal was the lead author of the ICMR-led Trial on convalescent plasma and is a physician at Rehoboth Mckinley Christian Hospital Healthcare Services, Gallup, New Mexico, U.S.
History of this topic
Coronavirus | Avoid hydroxychloroquine in COVID-19 patients with severe disease, says Health Ministry protocol
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