Trial reportBMC infectious diseases2024
Clinical antiviral efficacy of favipiravir in early COVID-19 (PLATCOV): an open-label, randomised, controlled, adaptive platform trial.
Trial report in BMC infectious diseases, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 14 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
14 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Drug treatments for mild or moderate covid-19: systematic review and network meta-analysis.BMJ (Clinical research ed.) · 2025Pooled it
- The relationship between viral clearance rates and disease progression in early symptomatic COVID-19: a systematic review and meta-regression analysis.The Journal of antimicrobial chemotherapy · 2024Pooled it
- Favipiravir for treating COVID-19.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2024Pooled it
- Population pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic modelling to evaluate favipiravir in combination with lopinavir-ritonavir in patients with COVID-19.British journal of clinical pharmacology · 2026Trial
- Oral Nirmatrelvir-Ritonavir for Covid-19 in Higher-Risk Outpatients.The New England journal of medicine · 2026Trial
- Temporal changes in SARS-CoV-2 clearance kinetics and the optimal design of antiviral pharmacodynamic studies: an individual patient data meta-analysis of a randomised, controlled, adaptive platform study (PLATCOV).The Lancet. Infectious diseases · 2024Trial
- Antiviral efficacy of molnupiravir versus ritonavir-boosted nirmatrelvir in patients with early symptomatic COVID-19 (PLATCOV): an open-label, phase 2, randomised, controlled, adaptive trial.The Lancet. Infectious diseases · 2024Trial
- Targeting SARS-CoV-2 Non-Structural Proteins: A Blueprint for Next-Generation Small-Molecule Coronavirus Antivirals.Pharmaceutics · 2026Review
- Organ-specific effects of curcumin on favipiravir-induced oxidative stress: renal benefit and hepatic risk.Naunyn-Schmiedeberg's archives of pharmacology · 2026Article
- Antiviral efficacy of fluoxetine in early symptomatic COVID-19: an open-label, randomised, controlled, adaptive platform trial (PLATCOV).EClinicalMedicine · 2025Article
- Efficacy and Safety of Antimalarial as Repurposing Drug for COVID-19 Following Retraction of Chloroquine and Hydroxychloroquine.Clinical pharmacology : advances and applications · 2025Review
- 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
- The Ability of Combined Flavonol and Trihydroxyorganic Acid to Suppress SARS-CoV-2 Reproduction.Viruses · 2024Article
- Advancements in Antiviral Therapy: Favipiravir Sodium in Nasal Formulation.AAPS PharmSciTech · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
36 authors.
Funding
Abstract
In early symptomatic COVID-19 treatment, high dose oral favipiravir did not accelerate viral clearance.
backgroundFavipiravir, an anti-influenza drug, has in vitro antiviral activity against SARS-CoV-2. Clinical trial evidence to date is inconclusive. Favipiravir has been recommended for the treatment of COVID-19 in some countries.
methodsIn a multicentre open-label, randomised, controlled, adaptive platform trial, low-risk adult patients with early symptomatic COVID-19 were randomised to one of ten treatment arms including high dose oral favipiravir (3.6g on day 0 followed by 1.6g daily to complete 7 days treatment) or no study drug. The primary outcome was the rate of viral clearance (derived under a linear mixed-effects model from the daily log
resultsIn the final analysis, the mITT population contained data from 114 patients randomised to favipiravir and 126 patients randomised concurrently to no study drug. Under the linear mixed-effects model fitted to all oropharyngeal viral density estimates in the first 8 days from randomisation (4,318 swabs), there was no difference in the rate of viral clearance between patients given favipiravir and patients receiving no study drug; a -1% (95% credible interval: -14 to 14%) difference. High dose favipiravir was well-tolerated.
interpretationFavipiravir does not accelerate viral clearance in early symptomatic COVID-19. The viral clearance rate estimated from quantitative measurements of oropharyngeal eluate viral densities assesses the antiviral efficacy of drugs in vivo with comparatively few studied patients.
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