Colchicine reduces COVID-19 risk: real-time meta analysis of 57 studies

Covid Analysis, May 2025

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https://c19early.org/caometa.html

Colchicine for COVID-19

5th treatment shown to reduce risk in September 2020, now with p = 0.00000017 from 57 studies.

Lower risk for mortality, ICU, hospitalization, and recovery.

No treatment is 100% effective. Protocols combine treatments.

5,700+ studies for 135 treatments. c19early.org

Significantly lower risk is seen for mortality, ICU admission, hospitalization, and recovery. 27 studies from 27 independent teams in 16 countries show significant benefit.

Meta analysis using the most serious outcome reported shows 28% [18‑36%] lower risk. Results are similar for higher quality and peer-reviewed studies and worse for Randomized Controlled Trials. Clinical outcomes suggest benefit while viral and case outcomes do not, consistent with an intervention that aids the immune system or recovery but may have limited antiviral effects. Early treatment is more effective than late treatment.

Results are robust — in exclusion sensitivity analysis 24 of 57 studies must be excluded to avoid finding statistically significant efficacy in pooled analysis.

Control Colchicine

RCT results are less favorable, however they are dominated by the very late stage RECOVERY RCT which is not generalizable to earlier usage.

No treatment is 100% effective. Protocols combine safe and effective options with individual risk/benefit analysis and monitoring. Other treatments are more effective. All data and sources to reproduce this analysis are in the appendix.

10 other meta analyses show significant improvements with colchicine for mortality1-8, oxygen therapy8, hospitalization9, and severity10.

10 meta analyses show significant improvements with colchicine for mortality1-8, oxygen therapy8, hospitalization9, and severity10.

Important missing comments or errors? Let us know.

1. Zein et al., Effect of colchicine on mortality in patients with COVID-19 – A systematic review and meta-analysis, Diabetes & Metabolic Syndrome: Clinical Research & Reviews, doi:10.1016/j.dsx.2022.102395.sciencedirect.com, doi.org.

2. Rai et al., The Potential Role of Colchicine in Reducing Mortality and Mechanical Ventilation Rates in COVID-19 Infection: A Meta-analysis, Journal of Advances in Medicine and Medical Research, doi:10.9734/jammr/2022/v34i2031503.journaljammr.com, doi.org.

3. Elshafei et al., Colchicine use might be associated with lower mortality in COVID‐19 patients: A meta‐analysis, European Journal of Clinical Investigation, doi:10.1111/eci.13645.wiley.com, doi.org.

4. Lien et al., Repurposing Colchicine in Treating Patients with COVID-19: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis, Life, doi:10.3390/life11080864.mdpi.com, doi.org.

5. Danjuma et al., Does Colchicine Reduce Mortality in Patients with Covid-19 Clinical Syndrome? An Umbrella Review of Published Meta-Analyses, Elsevier BV, doi:10.2139/ssrn.4447127.ssrn.com, doi.org.

6. Salah et al., Meta-analysis of the Effect of Colchicine on Mortality and Mechanical Ventilation in COVID-19, The American Journal of Cardiology, doi:10.1016/j.amjcard.2021.02.005.sciencedirect.com, doi.org.

7. Golpour et al., The effectiveness of Colchicine as an anti-inflammatory drug in the treatment of coronavirus disease 2019: Meta-analysis, International Journal of Immunopathology and Pharmacology, doi:10.1177/20587384211031763.sagepub.com, doi.org.

8. Elshiwy et al., The role of colchicine in the management of COVID-19: a meta-analysis, BMC Pulmonary Medicine, doi:10.1186/s12890-024-03001-0.biomedcentral.com, doi.org.

9. Kow et al., The effect of colchicine on mortality outcome and duration of hospital stay in patients with COVID‐19: A meta‐analysis of randomized trials, Immunity, Inflammation and Disease, doi:10.1002/iid3.562.wiley.com, doi.org.

10. Yasmin et al., Safety and efficacy of colchicine in COVID-19 patients: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized control trials, PLOS ONE, doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0266245.plos.org, doi.org.

Covid Analysis et al., May 2025, preprint, 1 author.

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Please send us corrections, updates, or comments. c19early involves the extraction of 100,000+ datapoints from thousands of papers. Community updates help ensure high accuracy. Treatments and other interventions are complementary. All practical, effective, and safe means should be used based on risk/benefit analysis. No treatment or intervention is 100% available and effective for all current and future variants. We do not provide medical advice. Before taking any medication, consult a qualified physician who can provide personalized advice and details of risks and benefits based on your medical history and situation. IMA and WCH provide treatment protocols.

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