Anticoagulant drugs reduced the risk of death from COVID-19 in a new study, which pointed to a more promising tool as doctors turn to their medications for treatments to quell the pandemic.
According to a study published in the British Medical Journal on Friday, approximately 14% of patients who were given anticoagulants within 24 hours of hospitalization died from coronavirus, compared to the 19% of those who do not. Patients were treated with heparin, an injected anticoagulant sold by generic drug manufacturers, including Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd.
Scientists have been looking for existing, low-cost drugs to help patients with COVID-19 who are seriously ill, as more elaborate treatments are disappointing. One of the biggest successes so far has been dexamethasone, a steroid that has been shown to reduce the risk of death for patients with ventilators by a third.
The findings of the anticoagulants are based on data from more than 4,000 patients, mostly men, from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. They were hospitalized between March 1 and July 31 with COVID-19. According to the study, patients receiving anticoagulants had no increased risk of bleeding.
The study is based on observation, which means the results need to be confirmed by clinical trials and some are underway, the scientists said. Drugs may show an outcome because blood clots that develop in the main veins and arteries could be the culprits in deaths from COVID-19, according to research.
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