SynthesisBMC infectious diseases2022
Efficacy of antiviral therapies for COVID-19: a systematic review of randomized controlled trials.
Synthesis in BMC infectious diseases, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 55 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
55 citing papers in PubMed, 5 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 118 citations in OpenAlex.
- Rapid review and meta-analysis of serial intervals for SARS-CoV-2 Delta and Omicron variants.BMC infectious diseases · 2023Pooled it
- Adjunctive therapy with lipid-lowering agents in COVID-19: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.Lipids in health and disease · 2023Pooled it
- Cost-effectiveness of remdesivir for the treatment of hospitalized patients with COVID-19: a systematic review.Infectious diseases of poverty · 2023Pooled it
- Remdesivir for the treatment of COVID-19.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2023Pooled it
- A systematic review and meta-analysis of the effectiveness and safety of COVID-19 vaccination in older adults.Frontiers in immunology · 2023Pooled it
- Evaluating the Effectiveness of Antivirals for COVID-19 in the Post-vaccine, Omicron Era: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.Open forum infectious diseases · 2026Article
- Safety and efficacy of different therapeutic regimens in Egyptian adults with moderate COVID-19 infection (EVEREST): a real-world retrospective study.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Effect of fasting duration on mortality after COVID-19 infection: A retrospective analysis at a single institution.Infectious medicine · 2025Article
- Inhibition of virally induced TFEB proteasomal degradation as a host-centric therapeutic approach for coronaviral infection.Science advances · 2025Article
- Long Covid Symptom Clusters, Correlates and Predictors in a Highly Vaccinated Australian Population in 2023.Health expectations : an international journal of public participation in health care and health policy · 2025Article
- Article
- Seroprevalence and Clinical Insights of Ocular Herpesvirus Infections: A Cross-Sectional Study Evaluating ELISA as a Diagnostic Tool.Infection and drug resistance · 2025Article
- Evaluation of the efficacy of triazavirin versus oseltamivir in management of COVID-19.Future science OA · 2024Article
- Real world effectiveness of early ensitrelvir treatment in patients with SARS-CoV-2, a retrospective case series.New microbes and new infections · 2024Article
- BIC/FTC/TAF Benefits People Living With HIV After Omicron Breakthrough Infection in Shortening Duration of Symptoms, Enhancing Specific Immune Response and Increasing Total CD4 Cells.Journal of medical virology · 2024Article
- Interplay between Lung Diseases and Viral Infections: A Comprehensive Review.Microorganisms · 2024Review
- The Value of Ursodeoxycholic Acid and Mesenchymal Stem Cells in the Treatment of Severe COVID-19.Microorganisms · 2024Article
- COVID-19 Variants and Vaccine Development.Viruses · 2024Review
- K-Means Clustering Identifies Diverse Clinical Phenotypes in COVID-19 Patients: Implications for Mortality Risks and Remdesivir Impact.Infectious diseases and therapy · 2024Article
- Early treatment with fluvoxamine, bromhexine, cyproheptadine, and niclosamide to prevent clinical deterioration in patients with symptomatic COVID-19: a randomized clinical trial.EClinicalMedicine · 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
22 authors at 9 institutions in 3 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundCoronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) continues to pose a significant threat to public health worldwide. The purpose of this study was to review current evidence obtained from randomized clinical trials on the efficacy of antivirals for COVID-19 treatment.
methodsA systematic literature search was performed using PubMed to identify randomized controlled trials published up to September 4, 2021 that examined the efficacy of antivirals for COVID-19 treatment. Studies that were not randomized controlled trials or that did not include treatment of COVID-19 with approved antivirals were excluded. Risk of bias was assessed using the Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network (SIGN) method. Due to study heterogeneity, inferential statistics were not performed and data were expressed as descriptive statistics.
resultsOf the 2,284 articles retrieved, 31 (12,440 patients) articles were included. Overall, antivirals were more effective when administered early in the disease course. No antiviral treatment demonstrated efficacy at reducing COVID-19 mortality. Sofosbuvir/daclatasvir results suggested clinical improvement, although statistical power was low. Remdesivir exhibited efficacy in reducing time to recovery, but results were inconsistent across trials.
conclusionsAlthough select antivirals have exhibited efficacy to improve clinical outcomes in COVID-19 patients, none demonstrated efficacy in reducing mortality. Larger RCTs are needed to conclusively establish efficacy.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What Socratic holds
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 Socratic graph.