A new clinical trial has found that doxycycline, a widely available antibiotic, can help prevent already hospitalized COVID-19 patients from worsening to the point where they need intensive care.
Sold in the United States under brand names like Acticlate, Vibramycin, and Oracea, doxycycline has been widely used to treat pneumonia caused by bacteria. It is also used to treat and prevent anthrax, a serious skin and lung infection notoriously associated with biological warfare.
To investigate whether doxycycline is effective in preventing COVID-19 from progressing into a severe state, an international team of scientists conducted a trial at six hospitals across India from November 2020 to May 2021. A total of 387 patients participated, of whom 228 were enrolled from mid-March to early May 2021, during the second COVID-19 peak in India….