A multiple sclerosis drug may speed COVID-19 recovery
A drug that boosts the immune system may help some people with COVID-19 fight off infections quickly, at least when taken in the early stages of the illness, a new study suggests. People taking a drug cocktail containing one of the body’s natural immune chemicals called interferon beta 1b plus a combination HIV drug and an antiviral drug took seven days to recover from COVID-19. In comparison, it took people on only the HIV combo drug 12 days to get better, researchers report May 8 in the Lancet. Recovery included reduced shedding of virus, improvements in symptoms and discharge from the hospital. In a previous study, the HIV combo lopinavir and ritonavir was not effective at combatting coronavirus infections in seriously ill people (SN: 3/19/20). In the new research, people who had COVID-19 symptoms for seven days or less recovered quickly, but the cocktail didn’t speed up recovery for those that had been sick longer, the researchers found. The study took place in Hong...