The New England Journal of Medicine and The Lancet have published expressions of concern regarding data used in two studies of drug therapy and COVID-19. Both studies used data from an international database that included electronic health records from 169 hospitals on three continents.

The study Cardiovascular Disease, Drug Therapy, and Mortality in COVID-19 was published on May 1 in the New England Journal of Medicine and examined the effect of preexisting treatment with angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors and angiotensin-receptor blockers (ARBs) on Covid-19. Read the expression of concern here.

The study Hydroxychloroquine or Chloroquine With or Without a Macrolide for Treatment of COVID-19: A Multinational Registry Analysis was published online May 22 in The Lancet found no benefit for the primary or secondary outcomes of in-hospital mortality and new ventricular arrhythmias, respectively, but rather found an association with an increased risk for both outcomes. Read more on the results here. Read the expression of concern here.

The New England Journal of Medicine writes they have asked the authors to provide evidence that the data are reliable. The Lancet writes an independent audit of the provenance and validity of the data has been commissioned and results are expected very shortly.

Clinical Topics: COVID-19 Hub, Novel Agents, Statins

Keywords: Coronavirus, Angiotensin Receptor Antagonists, Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme Inhibitors, Hydroxychloroquine, Peptidyl-Dipeptidase A, Chloroquine, Hospital Mortality, COVID-19, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2, Macrolides

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