The first patients have now been recruited for a new UK clinical trial of potential drug treatments for Covid-19.

There are currently no specific treatments for the virus but researchers from the University of Oxford will explore whether any existing medications are effective.

There is an urgent need for reliable evidence on the best care for patients with Covid-19"

Peter Horby

In the first instance, the Randomised Evaluation of Covid-19 Therapy (RECOVERY) trial will look at lopinavir-ritonavir, normally used to treat HIV, and the steroid dexamethasone, which is used in a wide range of conditions to reduce inflammation.

The drugs were recommended for inclusion by an expert panel that advises the chief medical officer in England and in the future it is anticipated that the trial will be expanded to assess the impact of other potential treatments.

The chance to join the trial will be offered to adult inpatients who have tested positive for Covid-19 in NHS hospitals and who have not been excluded for medical reasons.

All participants will receive the usual standard of care and will also be chosen at random to receive one of the two drugs being studied or no additional medication.

This will enable researchers to see whether any of the possible new treatments are more or less effective than those currently used for patients with the new strain of coronavirus.

In this way we can rapidly assess the value of potential treatments for Covid-19"

Martin Landray

Peter Horby, professor of emerging infectious diseases and global health in the Nuffield Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, is chief Investigator for the trial.

He said: There is an urgent need for reliable evidence on the best care for patients with Covid-19.

Providing possible new treatments through a well-designed clinical trial is the best way to get that evidence.

Deputy chief investigator Martin Landray, professor of medicine and epidemiology at the Nuffield Department of Population Health, University of Oxford, added: The streamlined design of this clinical trial allows consenting patients to be enrolled in large numbers easily and without compromising patient safety or adding significantly to the workload of busy hospitals and their staff.

In this way we can rapidly assess the value of potential treatments for Covid-19 and provide reliable information on the best ways to treat patients with this disease.

English chief medical officer Chris Whitty and NHS England medical director Stephen Powis have written to NHS trusts in England asking them to fully support the new trial.

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Clinical trial to find effective Covid-19 treatments gets underway - Nursing Times