Current Advances in Novel SARS-CoV-2 Disease (COVID-19) Treatment and Intervention Strategies

Background: During the eleven months of the novel SARS-CoV-2 disease (COVID-19) outbreak in China and its global spread, there is a remarkable understanding of its epidemiology, pathobiology, and clinical management strategies. While countering a heavy toll on health and the economy, world’s regional authorities are enforcing safety guidelines and providing patient care. Currently, there is no globally approved treatment or intervention for COVID-19. Methods: A structured online literature search for peer-reviewed articles was conducted on PubMed, Europe PMC, Google, WHO, CDC, FDA, and ClinicalTrials portals, using phrases such as COVID-19 treatment and intervention, COVID-19 drugs and COVID-19 vaccines. Results: Analysis of the retrieved data showed that as a part of ‘Solidarity Clinical Trials’, hundreds of treatment and intervention strategies, including antiviral drugs, cytokine antagonists, convalescent plasma therapy, and vaccine candidates, have been registered worldwide. While remdesivir, the anti- Ebola virus drug, has been approved as an ‘emergency use’ drug in the USA, favipiravir, the anti-flu drug, has been recently approved in Russia. Tocilizumab and sarilumab, the cytokine (IL-6) antagonists, have entered Phase-II/III clinical trials in hospitalized COVID-19 patients. Among the leading vaccine candidates, Phase-III clinical trial results of Moderna, Pfizer and Oxford vaccines seem to be game changers for COVID19. Conclusion: The world health authorities have strongly and quickly responded to the COVID-19 pandemic. Nonetheless, world bodies must unite in combating this health crisis by developing cost-effective drugs and vaccines and making them accessible to resource-poor countries.