Update for 12:30 p.m. PT June 4: The study in The Lancet has been retracted by three of its authors due to doubts about the veracity of the underlying data.

An analysis of 96,000 cases of COVID-19, published today in The Lancet, shows that patients who were treated with the antimalarial drugs chloroquine or hydroxychloroquine had a death rate that was roughly twice as high as for patients who weren’t.

  • The study, covering the period from last December to mid-April, reported a death rate of 18% for hospital patients taking hydroxychloroquine, 16.4% for chloroquine, and 22.2% to 23.8% for patients getting those drugs in combination with an antibiotic like azithromycin. The death rate for the control group was 9.3%.
  • Both of the drugs have been used for decades to treat malaria and autoimmune diseases such as lupus, but they carry a risk of causing negative side effects, including potentially fatal heart arrhythmia. The Lancet study confirmed the increased risk of heart-related death.
  • Hydroxychloroquine received a high-profile endorsement this week from President Donald Trump, who told reporters he’s been taking the drug daily. The effect of hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin with regard to COVID-19 is the subject of multiple clinical trials underway at the University of Washington and other sites.
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