Oral Curcumin With Piperine as Adjuvant Therapy for the Treatment of COVID-19: A Randomized Clinical Trial
RCT 140 patients, 70 treated with curcumin and piperine (for absorption), and 70 treated with probiotics, showing faster recovery, lower progression, and lower mortality with curcumin.
risk of death, 81.8% lower, RR 0.18, p = 0.02, treatment 2 of 70 (2.9%), control 11 of 70 (15.7%), NNT 7.8.
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risk of death, 60.0% lower, RR 0.40, p = 0.39, treatment 2 of 15 (13.3%), control 5 of 15 (33.3%), NNT 5.0, severe group.
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risk of death, 90.9% lower, RR 0.09, p = 0.05, treatment 0 of 25 (0.0%), control 5 of 25 (20.0%), NNT 5.0, relative risk is not 0 because of continuity correction due to zero events (with reciprocal of the contrasting arm), moderate group.
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risk of death, 66.7% lower, RR 0.33, p = 1.00, treatment 0 of 30 (0.0%), control 1 of 30 (3.3%), NNT 30, relative risk is not 0 because of continuity correction due to zero events (with reciprocal of the contrasting arm), mild group.
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Effect extraction follows pre-specified rules prioritizing more serious outcomes. Submit updates
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Pawar et al., 28 May 2021, Double Blind Randomized Controlled Trial, India, peer-reviewed, 8 authors, this trial compares with another treatment - results may be better when compared to placebo, trial
CTRI/2020/05/025482.
Abstract: CLINICAL TRIAL
published: 28 May 2021
doi: 10.3389/fphar.2021.669362
Oral Curcumin With Piperine as
Adjuvant Therapy for the Treatment of
COVID-19: A Randomized Clinical Trial
Kirti S Pawar 1*, Rahul N Mastud 1, Satheesh K Pawar 2, Samragni S Pawar 3, Rahul R Bhoite 4,
Ramesh R Bhoite 1, Meenal V Kulkarni 5 and Aditi R Deshpande 6
1
Giriraj Hospital and Intensive Care unit, Baramati, India, 2Siddhivinayak Ultrasound Research Center, Baramati, India, 3HBT
Medical College and Dr R N Cooper Municipal General Hospital, Mumbai, India, 4Medstar Good Samaritan Hospital, Baltimore,
MD, United States, 5Department of Preventive and Social Medicine, N K P Salve Medical College Nagpur, Nagpur, India,
6
Freelance Statistician, Nagpur, India
Edited by:
Dâmaris Silveira,
University of Brasilia, Brazil
Reviewed by:
Omar Estrada,
Instituto Venezolano de
Investigaciones Científicas (IVIC),
Venezuela
Bharat B Aggarwal,
University of Texas MD Anderson
Cancer Center, United States
*Correspondence:
Kirti S. Pawar
kirti.skpawar@gmail.com
Specialty section:
This article was submitted to
Ethnopharmacology,
a section of the journal
Frontiers in Pharmacology
Received: 18 February 2021
Accepted: 20 April 2021
Published: 28 May 2021
Citation:
Pawar KS, Mastud RN, Pawar SK,
Pawar SS, Bhoite RR, Bhoite RR,
Kulkarni MV and Deshpande AR (2021)
Oral Curcumin With Piperine as
Adjuvant Therapy for the Treatment of
COVID-19: A Randomized
Clinical Trial.
Front. Pharmacol. 12:669362.
doi: 10.3389/fphar.2021.669362
Background: Coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) has a wide range of
pathophysiological effects. Curcumin, an active constituent of Curcuma longa
(turmeric), has several properties, including anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, antiviral, antithrombotic, and anti-proliferative effects, which make it a promising candidate for the
symptomatic treatment of COVID-19.
Objective: We aimed to determine the effects of curcumin administered with piperine (to
optimize absorption) on symptoms in patients with COVID-19 in a double-blind, randomized,
controlled trial at a 30-bed dedicated COVID Health Center (DCHC) in Maharashtra, India.
Methods: In addition to conventional COVID-19 treatment, patients in the control group
received a dose of probiotics twice a day, and patients in the study group received curcumin
(525 mg) with piperine (2.5 mg) in tablet form twice a day. The effects of curcumin/piperine
treatment on primary and secondary outcomes were assessed for the duration of hospitalization.
Results: Patients with mild, moderate, and severe symptoms who received curcumin/
piperine treatment showed early symptomatic recovery (fever, cough, sore throat, and
breathlessness), less deterioration, fewer red flag signs, better ability to maintain oxygen
saturation above 94% on room air, and better clinical outcomes compared to patients of
the control group. Furthermore, curcumin/piperine treatment appeared to reduce the
duration of hospitalization in patients with moderate to severe symptoms, and fewer
deaths were observed in the curcumin/piperine treatment group.
Conclusions: Administration of oral curcumin with piperine as an adjuvant symptomatic
therapy in COVID-19 treatment could substantially reduce morbidity and mortality, and
ease the logistical and supply-related burdens on the healthcare system. Curcumin could
be a safe and natural therapeutic option to prevent Post-Covid thromboembolic events.
Clinicaltrials.gov identifier: CTRI/2020/05/025482
Keywords: curcumin,..
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