Nitazoxanide as an early treatment to reduce the intensity of COVID‑19 outbreaks among health personnel

Mendieta Zerón,Hugo; Meneses Calderón,José; Paniagua Coria,Leopoldo; Meneses Figueroa,Jazmín; Vargas Contreras,María José; Vives Aceves,Humberto Luis; Carranza Salazar,Fernando Manuel; Californias Hernández,David; Miraflores Vidaurri,Erika; Carrillo González,Alberto; Anaya Herrera,José

doi:10.3892/wasj.2021.94

Nitazoxanide as an early treatment to reduce the intensity of COVID‑19 outbreaks among health personnel

Authors:
- Hugo Mendieta Zerón
- José Meneses Calderón
- Leopoldo Paniagua Coria
- Jazmín Meneses Figueroa
- María José Vargas Contreras
- Humberto Luis Vives Aceves
- Fernando Manuel Carranza Salazar
- David Californias Hernández
- Erika Miraflores Vidaurri
- Alberto Carrillo González
- José Anaya Herrera
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Affiliations: ‘Mónica Pretelini Sáenz’ Maternal‑Perinatal Hospital (HMPMPS), 50010 Toluca, Mexico, Faculty of Medicine, Autonomous University of the State of Mexico (UAEMéx), 50180 Toluca, Mexico, ‘José Vicente Villada’ Cuautitlán General Hospital, 54800 Cuautitlán, State of Mexico, Mexico, Axapusco General Hospital, 55940 Axapusco, State of Mexico, Mexico
Published online on: March 4, 2021 https://doi.org/10.3892/wasj.2021.94
Article Number: 23
Copyright: © Mendieta Zerón et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of Creative Commons Attribution License.

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Abstract

The use of nitazoxanide has previously yielded successful results in vitro against the coronavirus. The aim of the present study was to examine the efficacy of the use of nitazoxanide at an early stage among healthcare workers exhibiting symptoms of COVID‑19. This was a prospective study carried out in 2020. Healthcare personnel who presented with COVID‑19 symptoms, in different 3 hospitals were invited to take Paramix (nitazoxanide), 500 mg orally, every 6 h for 2 days and then 500 mg twice a day for 4 days. To compare the hospitalization percentage, a group of healthcare workers with a respiratory viral infection without COVID‑19 criteria were also followed‑up. Over a period of 3 months, 150 healthcare workers (111 women and 39 men) presented respiratory symptoms with COVID‑19 criteria (mean age, 36±10.6 years; range, 18‑68 years). Only one female medical doctor, one nurse and one male from the auxiliary services had to be hospitalized and one death was registered It was thus concluded that nitazoxanide yielded successful results in vitro against previous coronavirus and may prove to be useful against SARS‑CoV‑2 as an early intervention to avoid complications, decreasing the expected number of hospitalizations among infected healthcare workers.

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