ReviewClinical pharmacokinetics2020
Chloroquine for SARS-CoV-2: Implications of Its Unique Pharmacokinetic and Safety Properties.
Review in Clinical pharmacokinetics, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 43 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
43 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 62 citations in OpenAlex.
- QT prolongation, torsades de pointes, and sudden death with short courses of chloroquine or hydroxychloroquine as used in COVID-19: A systematic review.Heart rhythm · 2020Pooled it
- Position statement from the Brazilian Society of Nephrology regarding chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine drug dose adjustment according to renal function.Jornal brasileiro de nefrologia · 2020Guideline
- An Updated Systematic Review of the Therapeutic Role of Hydroxychloroquine in Coronavirus Disease-19 (COVID-19).Clinical drug investigation · 2020Pooled it
- Recent Advances in the Design of Inhibitors Targeting the Viral Entry and Replication of the SARS-CoV-2 Virus, Driven by In Silico Approaches.Molecules (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Review
- How Can Pharmacology Help Us Overcome the Challenges of Drug Repositioning as Antivirals to Treat Emerging Pathogens? The Example of Covid-19.Clinical and translational science · 2026Review
- Chloroquine Alone and Combined with Antifungal Drug Against Candida albicans Biofilms In Vitro and In Vivo via Autophagy Inhibition.Mycopathologia · 2025Article
- Chloroquine Causes Aging-like Changes in Diaphragm Neuromuscular Junction Morphology in Mice.Cells · 2025Article
- Lipid emulsion inhibits the cardiac toxicity caused by chloroquine via inhibition of reactive oxygen species production.Korean journal of anesthesiology · 2023Article
- Biologic Functions of Hydroxychloroquine in Disease: From COVID-19 to Cancer.Pharmaceutics · 2022Review
- COVID-19: Main findings after a year and half of unease and the proper scientific progress (Review).Experimental and therapeutic medicine · 2022Review
- Non-nucleoside structured compounds with antiviral activity-past 10 years (2010-2020).European journal of medicinal chemistry · 2022Review
- The association between QT interval changes and the treatment protocols of COVID-19 patients.Northern clinics of Istanbul · 2022Article
- Senna makki and other active phytochemicals: Myths and realities behind covid19 therapeutic interventions.PloS one · 2022Article
- The risk factor for instability metabolic health and severity.Materials today. Proceedings · 2022Article
- Targeting Autophagy Triggers Apoptosis and Complements the Action of Venetoclax in Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia Cells.Cancers · 2021Article
- Model-Informed Repurposing of Medicines for SARS-CoV-2: Extrapolation of Antiviral Activity and Dose Rationale for Paediatric Patients.Pharmaceutics · 2021Article
- Effect of Hydroxychloroquine on QTc in Patients Diagnosed with COVID-19: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Journal of cardiovascular development and disease · 2021Review
- Exploring insights of hydroxychloroquine, a controversial drug in Covid-19: An update.Food and chemical toxicology : an international journal published for the British Industrial Biological Research Association · 2021Review
- QTc Prolongation in COVID-19 Patients Using Chloroquine.Cardiovascular toxicology · 2021Observational
- 4-Aminoquinoline compounds from the Spanish flu to COVID-19.Biomedicine & pharmacotherapy = Biomedecine & pharmacotherapie · 2021Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
4 authors at 3 institutions in 3 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Since in vitro studies and a preliminary clinical report suggested the efficacy of chloroquine for COVID-19-associated pneumonia, there is increasing interest in this old antimalarial drug. In this article, we discuss the pharmacokinetics and safety of chloroquine that should be considered in light of use in SARS-CoV-2 infections. Chloroquine is well absorbed and distributes extensively resulting in a large volume of distribution with an apparent and terminal half-life of 1.6 days and 2 weeks, respectively. Chloroquine is metabolized by cytochrome P450 and renal clearance is responsible for one third of total clearance. The lack of reliable information on target concentrations or doses for COVID-19 implies that for both adults and children, doses that proved effective and safe in malaria should be considered, such as 'loading doses' in adults (30 mg/kg over 48 h) and children (70 mg/kg over 5 days), which reported good tolerability. Here, plasma concentrations were < 2.5 μmol/L, which is associated with (minor) toxicity. While the influence of renal dysfunction, critical illness, or obesity seems small, in critically ill patients, reduced absorption may be anticipated. Clinical experience has shown that chloroquine has a narrow safety margin, as three times the adult therapeutic dosage for malaria can be lethal when given as a single dose. Although infrequent, poisoning in children is extremely dangerous where one to two tablets can potentially be fatal. In conclusion, the pharmacokinetic and safety properties of chloroquine suggest that chloroquine can be used safely for an acute virus infection, under corrected QT monitoring, but also that the safety margin is small, particularly in children.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.