Batool Saima, Vuthaluru Kiranmayi, Hassan Amna, Bseiso Omair, Tehseen Zuha, Pizzorno Guiomarly, Rodriguez Reyes Yadelys, Saleem Faraz
Internal Medicine, Hameed Latif Hospital, Lahore, PAK.
Pediatrics, Jawaharlal Nehru Medical College, Belgaum, IND.
Cureus. 2023 Jan 12;15(1):e33676. doi: 10.7759/cureus.33676. eCollection 2023 Jan.
This meta-analysis was conducted with the aim to assess the safety and efficacy of favipiravir in treating patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). It was carried out in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. We performed a thorough search of online databases including PubMed, EMBASE, and the Cochrane Library from their inceptions to November 30, 2022, using the following search terms: "Favipiravir" AND "COVID-19". We included randomized control trials (RCTs) that were conducted to determine the efficacy and safety of favipiravir for COVID-19. Efficacy outcomes assessed in this meta-analysis included time to viral clearance in days, time to clinical improvement in days, need for supplementary oxygen, and requirement of ICU admission. For safety outcomes, we compared overall adverse events and serious adverse events that had occurred during the treatment between the patients in the treatment group and the control group. Eight studies involving 1,448 patients were included in this meta-analysis. The results showed that no significant differences were found between the two groups in terms of time to viral clearance, time to clinical improvement, and the need for supplementary oxygen and ICU admission. In terms of safety, no significant differences were found between the two groups in relation to adverse events and serious adverse events. The current study found that favipiravir did not exert any beneficial impact on reducing ICU admission, the need for oxygen therapy, and time to viral clearance. However, a slight benefit was reported with regard to the time for clinical improvement, but it was insignificant between the two study groups.
本荟萃分析旨在评估法匹拉韦治疗2019冠状病毒病（COVID-19）患者的安全性和有效性。该研究按照系统评价和荟萃分析的首选报告项目（PRISMA）指南进行。我们对包括PubMed、EMBASE和Cochrane图书馆在内的在线数据库进行了全面检索，检索时间从各数据库建立至2022年11月30日，使用了以下检索词：“法匹拉韦”和“COVID-19”。我们纳入了为确定法匹拉韦治疗COVID-19的有效性和安全性而进行的随机对照试验（RCT）。本荟萃分析评估的疗效指标包括病毒清除时间（以天为单位）、临床改善时间（以天为单位）、是否需要补充氧气以及入住重症监护病房（ICU）的需求。对于安全性指标，我们比较了治疗组和对照组患者在治疗期间发生的总体不良事件和严重不良事件。本荟萃分析纳入了八项研究，涉及1448名患者。结果显示，两组在病毒清除时间、临床改善时间、补充氧气需求和入住ICU方面均无显著差异。在安全性方面，两组在不良事件和严重不良事件方面也无显著差异。当前研究发现，法匹拉韦在降低入住ICU率、氧气治疗需求和病毒清除时间方面没有任何有益影响。然而，在临床改善时间方面报告了轻微益处，但两个研究组之间的差异不显著。
