Therapeutic Algorithm for Use of Melatonin in Patients With COVID-19
Reiter et al.,
Therapeutic Algorithm for Use of Melatonin in Patients With COVID-19,
Frontiers in Medicine, doi:10.3389/fmed.2020.00226 (Review)
Review of melatonin's action as an antiinflammatory, antioxidant, and antiviral (against other viruses) agent, and proposed therapeutic algorithm for use with COVID-19.
Reiter et al., 15 May 2020, peer-reviewed, 4 authors.
Abstract: MINI REVIEW
published: 15 May 2020
doi: 10.3389/fmed.2020.00226
Therapeutic Algorithm for Use of
Melatonin in Patients With COVID-19
Russel J. Reiter 1*, Pedro Abreu-Gonzalez 2 , Paul E. Marik 3 and
Alberto Dominguez-Rodriguez 4,5,6*
1
Department of Cell Systems and Anatomy, UT Health San Antonio, San Antonio, TX, United States, 2 Department of
Physiology, Faculty of Medicine, University of La Laguna, San Cristóbal de La Laguna, Spain, 3 Division of Pulmonary and
Critical Care Medicine, Eastern Virginia Medical School, Norfolk, VA, United States, 4 Department of Cardiology, Hospital
Universitario de Canarias, Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain, 5 Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud, Universidad Europea de
Canarias, Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain, 6 CIBER de enfermedades CardioVasculares (CIBERCV), Madrid, Spain
Edited by:
Zisis Kozlakidis,
International Agency for Research on
Cancer (IARC), France
Reviewed by:
Irene Crespo,
University of León, Spain
Abdul Alim Al-Bari,
University of Rajshahi, Bangladesh
Javier González-Gallego,
University of León, Spain
*Correspondence:
Russel J. Reiter
reiter@uthscsa.edu
Alberto Dominguez-Rodriguez
adrvdg@hotmail.com
Specialty section:
This article was submitted to
Infectious Diseases – Surveillance,
Prevention and Treatment,
a section of the journal
Frontiers in Medicine
Received: 06 April 2020
Accepted: 04 May 2020
Published: 15 May 2020
Citation:
Reiter RJ, Abreu-Gonzalez P, Marik PE
and Dominguez-Rodriguez A (2020)
Therapeutic Algorithm for Use of
Melatonin in Patients With COVID-19.
Front. Med. 7:226.
doi: 10.3389/fmed.2020.00226
Frontiers in Medicine | www.frontiersin.org
The coronavirus, COVID-19, has infected hundreds of thousands and killed tens of
thousands of individuals worldwide. This highly infectious condition continues to ravage
the world population and has yet to reach it peak infective rate in some countries.
Many conventional drugs including hydroxychloroquine/chloroquine, lopinavir, remdesivir,
etc., have been repurposed as treatments for this often deadly disease, but there is no
specifically-designed effective drug available; also, the drugs mentioned have significant
side effects and their efficacy is unknown. New drugs and vaccines are being designed
as COVID-19 treatment, but their development and testing will require months to years.
Time is not a luxury that this crisis has. Thus, there is a serious unmet need for the
identification of currently-available and safe molecules which can be used to slow or treat
COVID-19 disease. Here, we suggest melatonin be given consideration for prophylactic
use or treatment alone or in combination with other drugs. Melatonin’s multiple actions
as an anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidant, and anti-viral (against other viruses) make it a
reasonable choice for use. Melatonin is readily available, can be easily synthesized
in large quantities, is inexpensive, has a very high safety profile and can be easily
self-administered. Melatonin is endogenously-produced molecule in small amounts with
its production diminishing with increased age. Under the current critical conditions, large
doses of melatonin alone or in combination with currently-recommended drugs, e.g.,
hydroxychloroquine/chloroquine, to resist COVID-19 infection would seem judicious.
Keywords: melatonin, COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2, treatment-drug, prevention & control
Please send us corrections, updates, or comments. Vaccines and
treatments are complementary. All practical, effective, and safe means should
be used based on risk/benefit analysis. No treatment, vaccine, 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.
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