The first encouraging results of an ongoing study conducted in Greece about the benefits of colchicine in treating the COVID-19 coronavirus were very encouraging in terms of complications of the virus to the heart and the lungs, said Professor of Cardiology Christos Stefanadis from the school of medicine at the University of Athens.
"The signs from the data we have processed so far are very encouraging " he told ANA adding that "the inflammation markers CPR were dropping significantly as well as the cardiac troponin which indicates damage to the myocardium. All the above indications advocate that it is a very important medicine for patients with coronavirus and are facing the risk of catastrophic complications, as the collapse of the myocardium and of the lungs."
The study has been carried out on 120 patients over the last couple of weeks, with half of them receiving the drug and the rest as the control group.
"The first indications showed reduction of the inflammation" said Stefanadis.
He clarified that the study was for patients with coronavirus with suspected or with heart problems but "what we observed was that it reduces the inflammation and probably it may be also used as preventive treatment. The fact for the current moment is that hospitalised patients that are taking colchicine showed a substantial inflammation reduction in comparison with those that did not take colchicine, independent of having or not problems with their heart" he added.
On Monday, Health Ministry spokesperson and infectious diseases expert Professor Sotiris Tsiodras also announced 10 new confirmed cases of Covid-19 in Greece and six death in the last 24 hours.
The Covid-19 infections total in Greece stands at 2,245.
Deaths total 116 since the start of the outbreak, while 61 patients are being treated in Intensive Care Units.
