By Mohamed Jaward Nyallay
Officials at the Pharmacy Board of Sierra Leone and the Ministry of Health and Sanitation have cautioned against the use of corticosteroid Dexamethasone as prevent against COVID-19. The warning comes as the drug continues to look promising, by curing critically ill COVID-19 patients.
A study by Oxford Recovery Trial in the UK showed that the drug was effective in increasing the chance of recovery for patients who were critically ill; those on ventilators and other oxygen devices.
“This is the first treatment to be shown to reduce mortality in patients with COVID-19 requiring oxygen or ventilator support,” World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said about the drug.
Dexamethasone is a steroid that has been used since the 1960s to reduce inflammation in a range of conditions, including inflammatory disorders and certain cancers, the WHO stated in a press release on June 16th about the virus.
In a statement the Pharmacy Board says “Dexamethasone suppresses the immune system and in the UK study, this pharmacological effect was beneficial in suppressing the immune reaction in severe and critical COVID-19 patients.”
The statement continues: “Dexamethasone should therefore not under any circumstances be used for the prevention of COVID-19, as its potential to supress the immune system will counteract the body’s natural function to fight against COVID-19 and other infections in long term use.”
The caution by health authorities in Sierra Leone is consistent with WHO advice on the use of the drug. Sierra Leone has recorded more than 1,300 cases with more than 900 recoveries since the country recorded its index case on March 31st this year.
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