Trial reportInternational immunopharmacology2021
Favipiravir in the treatment of patients with SARS-CoV-2 RNA recurrent positive after discharge: A multicenter, open-label, randomized trial.
Trial report in International immunopharmacology, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 23 papers, 5 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
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
23 citing papers in PubMed, 5 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 42 citations in OpenAlex.
- Drug treatments for mild or moderate covid-19: systematic review and network meta-analysis.BMJ (Clinical research ed.) · 2025Pooled it
- The efficacy and adverse effects of favipiravir on patients with COVID-19: A systematic review and meta-analysis of published clinical trials and observational studies.International journal of infectious diseases : IJID : official publication of the International Society for Infectious Diseases · 2022Pooled it
- Efficacy of antiviral therapies for COVID-19: a systematic review of randomized controlled trials.BMC infectious diseases · 2022Pooled it
- Effectiveness of favipiravir in COVID-19: a live systematic review.European journal of clinical microbiology & infectious diseases : official publication of the European Society of Clinical Microbiology · 2021Pooled it
- Efficacy of COVID-19 Treatments: A Bayesian Network Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials.Frontiers in public health · 2021Pooled it
- Clinical antiviral efficacy of favipiravir in early COVID-19 (PLATCOV): an open-label, randomised, controlled, adaptive platform trial.BMC infectious diseases · 2024Trial
- Article
- Recent advances in drug repositioning and rediscovery for different therapeutic activities utilizing updated technological approaches.Molecular diversity · 2026Review
- Antivirals in COVID-19: A Focus on Pediatric Cardiac Patients.The Canadian journal of infectious diseases & medical microbiology = Journal canadien des maladies infectieuses et de la microbiologie medicale · 2025Review
- Review
- Article
- Article
- Drug repositioning in the COVID-19 pandemic: fundamentals, synthetic routes, and overview of clinical studies.European journal of clinical pharmacology · 2023Review
- Severe COVID-19: Drugs and Clinical Trials.Journal of clinical medicine · 2023Review
- Real-World Effectiveness and Optimal Dosage of Favipiravir for Treatment of COVID-19: Results from a Multicenter Observational Study in Thailand.Antibiotics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2022Article
- Antiviral Used among Non-Severe COVID-19 Cases in Relation to Time till Viral Clearance: A Retrospective Cohort Study.Antibiotics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2022Article
- Baseline uric acid levels and steady-state favipiravir concentrations are associated with occurrence of hyperuricemia among COVID-19 patients.International journal of infectious diseases : IJID : official publication of the International Society for Infectious Diseases · 2022Article
- Vaccination status, favipiravir, and micronutrient supplementation roles in post-COVID symptoms: A longitudinal study.PloS one · 2022Article
- Article
- Emerging small molecule antivirals may fit neatly into COVID-19 treatment.Drugs & therapy perspectives : for rational drug selection and use · 2022Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
25 authors at 8 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundThe clinical characteristics and treatment of patients who tested positive for COVID-19 after recovery remained elusive. Effective antiviral therapy is important for tackling these patients. We assessed the efficacy and safety of favipiravir for treating these patients.
methodsThis is a multicenter, open-label, randomized controlled trial in SARS-CoV-2 RNA re-positive patients. Patients were randomly assigned in a 2:1 ratio to receive either favipiravir, in addition to standard care, or standard care alone. The primary outcome was time to achieve a consecutive twice (at intervals of more than 24 h) negative RT-PCR result for SARS-CoV-2 RNA in nasopharyngeal swab and sputum sample.
resultsBetween March 27 and May 9, 2020, 55 patients underwent randomization; 36 were assigned to the favipiravir group and 19 were assigned to the control group. Favipiravir group had a significantly shorter time from start of study treatment to negative nasopharyngeal swab and sputum than control group (median 17 vs. 26 days); hazard ratio 2.1 (95% CI [1.1-4.0], p = 0.038). The proportion of virus shedding in favipiravir group was higher than control group (80.6% [29/36] vs. 52.6% [10/19], p = 0.030, respectively). C-reactive protein decreased significantly after treatment in the favipiravir group (p = 0.016). The adverse events were generally mild and self-limiting.
conclusionFavipiravir was safe and superior to control in shortening the duration of viral shedding in SARS-CoV-2 RNA recurrent positive after discharge. However, a larger scale and randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial is required to confirm our conclusion.
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