Chloroquine and Hydroxychloroquine in COVID-19: Practice Implications for Healthcare Professionals

Chloroquine (CQ) and its derivatives such as hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) remain mainstay of therapy for malaria. These drugs are also approved for certain autoimmune diseases including systemic lupus erythematosus. The antiviral activities of these drugs and their mechanisms have been studied in vitro previously against various viruses including severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV). During the current coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, in vivo and in vitro investigations of these drugs have demonstrated potential against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The authors used the keywords to find the relevant studies, like COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2, pandemic, complications, repositioning, toxicity, overdose, treatment plan, implication strategies, prevention, chloroquine, hydroxychloroquine, clinical trials, drug interactions, and practices advice, etc., in Pubmed and Google Scholar. This review aims to provide a detailed insight of practice implications related to these drugs, which would aid healthcare professionals to ensure the safe use of these drugs during the management of patients with COVID-19 disease. Key Words: Chloroquine, Hydroxychloroquine, COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2, Practice implications.