ReviewInternational journal of antimicrobial agents2020
Macrolides and viral infections: focus on azithromycin in COVID-19 pathology.
Review in International journal of antimicrobial agents, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 61 papers, 2 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
61 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 136 citations in OpenAlex.
- The Spectrum of Antibiotic Prescribing During COVID-19 Pandemic: A Systematic Literature Review.Microbial drug resistance (Larchmont, N.Y.) · 2021Pooled it
- Antibiotics for the treatment of COVID-19.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2021Pooled it
- Azithromycin alleviates post-inflammatory wheezing in children by inhibiting SETD1B-mediated histone H3K4me3 methylation and macrophage polarization.Pediatric research · 2026Article
- FeRSC advances · 2025Article
- Early Intervention in Herpes Simplex Virus-1 Replication in Vitro with Allenic Macrolide Archangiumide.International journal of molecular sciences · 2025Article
- Repositioning of Antibiotics in the Treatment of Viral Infections.Current microbiology · 2024Review
- MACROLACTONES AND MACROLIDES FROM PLANT ENDOPHYTIC FUNGI, CHEMICAL SCAFFOLDS, BIOLOGICAL ACTIVITIES AND SPECTROSCOPY: A COMPREHENSIVE REVIEW.Bulletin of pharmaceutical sciences · 2024Article
- Developing a novel magnetic organic polymer for selective extraction and determination of 16 macrolides in water and honey samples.RSC advances · 2024Article
- Antibiotic Potentiation as a Promising Strategy to Combat Macrolide Resistance in Bacterial Pathogens.Antibiotics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Review
- Is there a correlation between antibiotic use and the severity or post-infection conditions of COVID-19 and other viral infections?Clinical and experimental medicine · 2023Review
- Oxidative stress and COVID-19-associated neuronal dysfunction: mechanisms and therapeutic implications.Acta biochimica et biophysica Sinica · 2023Review
- Article
- Assessing the effects of therapeutic combinations on SARS-CoV-2 infected patient outcomes: A big data approach.PloS one · 2023Article
- Drug-Induced Liver Injury in Hospitalized Patients during SARS-CoV-2 Infection.Medicina (Kaunas, Lithuania) · 2022Review
- SARS-CoV-2 Infection in Patients with Cystic Fibrosis: What We Know So Far.Life (Basel, Switzerland) · 2022Review
- Liver injury induced by COVID 19 treatment - what do we know?World journal of gastroenterology · 2022Review
- Local Delivery of Azithromycin Nanoformulation Attenuated Acute Lung Injury in Mice.Molecules (Basel, Switzerland) · 2022Article
- Viral Infection and Antiviral Treatments in Ocular Pathologies.Microorganisms · 2022Review
- A Comprehensive Review on the Efficacy of Several Pharmacologic Agents for the Treatment of COVID-19.Life (Basel, Switzerland) · 2022Review
- Review
1 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
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 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
The emergence of the new COVID-19 virus is proving to be a challenge in seeking effective therapies. Since the most severe clinical manifestation of COVID-19 appears to be a severe acute respiratory syndrome, azithromycin has been proposed as a potential treatment. Azithromycin is known to have immunomodulating and antiviral properties. In vitro studies have demonstrated the capacity of azithromycin in reducing production of pro-inflammatory cytokines such as IL-8, IL-6, TNF alpha, reduce oxidative stress, and modulate T-helper functions. At the same time there are multiple clinical evidences of the role of azithromycin in acute respiratory distress syndrome and against Middle East Respiratory syndrome (MERS). Some preliminary evidence has demonstrated controversial results regarding efficacy of azithromycin in combination with hydroxychloroquine in COVID-19. First, a French trial demonstrated 100% virological negativizing of six patients treated with azithromycin plus hydroxychloroquine vs. 57.1% of patients treated with only hydroxychloroquine and 12.5% of the control group (P < 0.05). On the other hand, another case series revealed no efficacy at all on 11 patients treated with the same combination and doses. Furthermore, there are some concerns regarding the association of azithromycin and hydroxychloroquine because of potential QT prolongation. In fact, both drugs have this as a potential side effect and evidence regarding the safe use of this combination is controversial. Despite the necessity to quickly find solutions for COVID-19, extreme caution must be used in evaluating the risk-benefit balance. However, based on preclinical and clinical evidence and some preliminary results in COVID-19, azithromycin could have potential in the fight against this new disease.
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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.