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FRIDAY, June 5, 2020 (HealthDay News) — A small number of nonhospitalized patients with COVID-19 who self-medicated with high-dose famotidine reported some relief of their symptoms, according to a case series published online June 4 in Gut<\/i>.<\/p>\n
Tobias Janowitz, M.D., Ph.D., from Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory in New York City, and colleagues assessed longitudinal changes in patient-reported outcome measures in nonhospitalized patients with COVID-19 who self-administered high-dose famotidine. Data were included for 10 adult patients. Longitudinal severity scores of five symptoms (cough, shortness of breath, fatigue, headaches, and anosmia) were collected, and general unwellness was modeled.<\/p>\n
The most frequently used famotidine regimen was 80 mg three times daily for a median of 11 days. The researchers found that famotidine was well tolerated. After starting famotidine, all patients reported marked improvements in disease-related symptoms. Within 24 hours of starting famotidine, the combined symptom score improved significantly and peripheral oxygen saturation (two patients) and device-recorded activity (one patient) increased.<\/p>\n
“Our case series suggests, but does not establish, a benefit from famotidine treatment in outpatients with COVID-19,” the authors write. “Clinically, we unreservedly share the opinion that well designed and informative studies of efficacy are required to evaluate candidate medications for COVID-19 as for other diseases.”<\/p>\n