Azithromycin News and Research

RSS

Azithromycin, also known as Zithromax, belongs to the class of medicines known as antibacterials orantibiotics. These medicines kill bacteria (small organisms that can cause infection in humans) or stopbacteria from growing. Patients with weakened immune systems, includingpeople with HIV, tend to have more frequent andmore serious bacterial infections. Azithromycinwas approved by the FDA on June 14, 1996, formany uses, including the prevention and treatmentof Mycobacterium avium complex (MAC) inpersons with advanced HIV infection. It is alsobeing investigated to see how well it works inpreventing other kinds of bacterial infections inpeople with HIV.

COVID-19 first wave increased the sale of antibiotic formulations in India

The first wave of COVID-19 in 2020 in India saw a substantial increase in the sale of antibiotic formulations used in adults and adolescents, especially azithromycin, says a study.

19 Jul 2021

Broad-spectrum antibiotic no more effective than placebo in preventing COVID-19 symptoms

A UC San Francisco study has found that the antibiotic azithromycin was no more effective than a placebo in preventing symptoms of COVID-19 among non-hospitalized patients, and may increase their chance of hospitalization, despite widespread prescription of the antibiotic for the disease.

16 Jul 2021

What lessons have we learned over a year into the COVID-19 pandemic?

One of the pressing questions scientists are currently trying to answer is whether the current vaccines will remain effective against the emerging SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern. A new piece of research has been published in the journal Biomedicines, which discusses the knowledge we have gained thus far and the questions that researchers should address in future work.

8 Jun 2021

The great promise of antiviral peptides against SARS-CoV-2

A new study, recently published in the journal Viruses, describes the impressive evidence for the role of antimicrobial peptidse (AMPs) in the treatment of COVID-19.

7 Jun 2021

Hydroxychloroquine + Azithromycin therapy at a higher dose improved survival by nearly 200% in ventilated COVID patients

However, a fascinating new study posted to the medRxiv* preprint server suggests that such disappointment may have been both premature and unwarranted, based on a re-analysis of over 250 patients on invasive mechanical ventilation (IMV) during the first two months of the pandemic.

2 Jun 2021

Are COVID-19 medications safe in pregnancy?

Most medications being tested today in clinical trials for the treatment of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) have been repurposed from other indications. These are typically not tested in pregnant women. A new study, published in the journal PLOS ONE, summarizes what is known about the safety of these drugs in this group.

24 May 2021

Investigators map how drugs were used on people hospitalized with COVID-19 infection

A record of medicine utilization patterns assembled by an interdisciplinary team of researchers at the University of California, Irvine and the UC San Diego School of Medicine reveals the thought, care and scientific rigor clinicians at UC Health medical centers applied in their treatment of patients with COVID-19 in 2020.

21 May 2021

Ravi Sheth receives 2020 Hertz thesis prize for transforming microbial research

Hertz Fellow Ravi Sheth says his lab in the Brooklyn Navy Yard is "like a Willy Wonka factory of microbes" geared toward improving the taste and safety of food and beverages.

4 May 2021

Phase 3 trial finds corticosteroid inhaler speeds recovery time in COVID-19 patients

The corticosteroid budesonide shows promise in treating patients with mild COVID-19 infection. Interim analysis of the phase 3 PRINCIPLE clinical trial was posted to the medRxiv preprint server. Researchers found a 3-day faster recovery of COVID-19 symptoms in people at high risk for severe side effects administered a budesonide inhaler. There was also a 2.1% reduction in hospitalization and death.

14 Apr 2021

Hydroxychloroquine has no effect in treating people with COVID-19, study shows

A year ago, infectious disease doctor Christine Johnston was leading a study on the use of hydroxychloroquine for the treatment of people with COVID-19.

10 Mar 2021

Five herbal medicines show potent activity against Babesia duncani in the lab

Bay Area Lyme Foundation, a leading sponsor of Lyme disease research in the U.S., today announced the publication of new data finding that five herbal medicines had potent activity compared to commonly-used antibiotics in test tubes against Babesia duncani, a malaria-like parasite found on the West Coast of the U.S. that causes the disease babesiosis.

9 Mar 2021

Study calls for continuous monitoring of dark web marketplaces in view of vaccines shortage

New research carried out by City data scientist, Dr. Andrea Baronchelli, and colleagues, into the dark web marketplace (DWM) trade in products related to COVID-19, has revealed the need for the continuous monitoring of dark web marketplaces (DWMs), especially in light of the current shortage and availability of coronavirus vaccines.

5 Feb 2021