SynthesisThe Journal of antimicrobial chemotherapy2022
Azithromycin in patients with COVID-19: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
Synthesis in The Journal of antimicrobial chemotherapy, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 22 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
22 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Effect of anti-inflammatory drugs on the storm of inflammatory factors in respiratory tract infection caused by SARS-CoV-2: an updated meta-analysis.Frontiers in public health · 2023Pooled it
- Risk of COVID-19 infection and the associated hospitalization, ICU admission and mortality in opioid use disorder: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Addiction science & clinical practice · 2022Pooled it
- Effectiveness of a clinical decision support algorithm (CDSA) on reducing unnecessary antibiotic prescriptions for upper respiratory tract infections among ambulatory HIV-infected adults in Mozambique: a cluster randomized controlled trial.BMC infectious diseases · 2026Trial
- SARS-CoV-2 Infection disrupts lower respiratory tract microbiome function and interactions.BMC microbiology · 2026Article
- The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the epidemiology, clinical manifestations and molecular characteristics ofFrontiers in immunology · 2026Review
- The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the antibiotic consumption and resistance in Montenegro.European journal of public health · 2025Article
- Article
- Antibiotic Treatment in Patients Hospitalized for Nonsevere COVID-19.JAMA network open · 2025Article
- Ultra-Low-Dose Inhalation of Melphalan as an Additional Treatment for COVID-19-Associated Pneumonia.Journal of clinical medicine · 2025Article
- Natural and Synthetic Coumarins as Potential Drug Candidates against SARS-CoV-2/COVID-19.Current medicinal chemistry · 2025Review
- Observational
- H. Pylori Treatment in the COVID-19 Era. What Have We Learned So Far?Current gastroenterology reports · 2024Review
- The nosocomial infection survey among patients suffering from the Coronavirus disease-2019 hospitalized in Ayatollah Rouhani Hospital, Babol.Caspian journal of internal medicine · 2024Article
- Investigational medications in 9,638 hospitalized patients with severe COVID-19: lessons from the "fail-and-learn" strategy during the first two waves of the pandemic in 2020.Patient safety in surgery · 2023Article
- Antimicrobial Consumption from 2017 to 2021 in East Trinidad and Tobago: A Study in the English-Speaking Caribbean.Antibiotics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Article
- Antibiotic Receipt During Outpatient Visits for COVID-19 in the US, From 2020 to 2022.JAMA health forum · 2023Article
- Article
- A Comprehensive Review on the Efficacy of Several Pharmacologic Agents for the Treatment of COVID-19.Life (Basel, Switzerland) · 2022Review
- Prevalence of Antimicrobial Prescribing in Long-Term Care Facilities in a Local Health Authority of Northern Italy.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2022Article
- Azithromycin through the Lens of the COVID-19 Treatment.Antibiotics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2022Review
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundAzithromycin has been widely used in the management of COVID-19. However, the evidence on its actual effects remains disperse and difficult to apply in clinical settings. This systematic review and meta-analysis summarizes the available evidence to date on the beneficial and adverse effects of azithromycin in patients with COVID-19.
methodsThe PRISMA 2020 statement criteria were followed. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and observational studies comparing clinical outcomes of patients treated with and without azithromycin, indexed until 5 July 2021, were searched in PubMed, Embase, The Web of Science, Scopus, The Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials and MedRXivs. We used random-effects models to estimate pooled effect size from aggregate data.
resultsThe initial search produced 4950 results. Finally, 16 studies, 5 RCTs and 11 with an observational design, with a total of 22 984 patients, were included. The meta-analysis showed no difference in mortality for those treated with or without azithromycin, in observational studies [OR: 0.90 (0.66-1.24)], RCTs [OR: 0.97 (0.87-1.08)] and also when both types of studies were pooled together [with an overall OR: 0.95 (0.79-1.13)]. Different individual studies also reported no significant difference for those treated with or without azithromycin in need for hospital admission or time to admission from ambulatory settings, clinical severity, need for intensive care, or adverse effects.
conclusionsThe results presented in this systematic review do not support the use of azithromycin in the management of COVID-19. Future research on treatment for patients with COVID-19 may need to focus on other drugs.
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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.