Lithium as a candidate treatment for COVID-19: Promises and pitfalls

Drug Development Research
Ravi Philip Rajkumar

Abstract

The pandemic of respiratory illness caused by a novel coronavirus (SARS-nCoV-2) is a global health crisis. Despite numerous preliminary results, there is as yet no treatment of proven efficacy for this condition. In this context, the pharmacological properties of lithium, better known as a treatment for mood disorders, merit closer examination. Lithium has shown in vitro efficacy at inhibiting the replication of coronaviruses responsible for gastrointestinal and respiratory diseases in animals. It has immunomodulatory properties that may be of additional benefit in moderating the host inflammatory response to the novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2). Furthermore, there is evidence that lithium may exert a protective action against upper respiratory infections and influenza-like illnesses in patients taking it for other indications. These promising reports must be balanced against the narrow therapeutic index and high risk of toxicity associated with lithium therapy, its documented interactions with several commonly used drugs, and the absence of evidence of its efficacy against coronaviruses responsible for human disease. Nevertheless, naturalistic studies of the risk of COVID-19 in patients already receiving lithium could provide in...Continue Reading

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Citations

Nov 27, 2020·Frontiers in Pharmacology·Janet SultanaGianluca Trifirò
Oct 2, 2021·Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·Xiaolei LiuPeter S Klein
Oct 24, 2021·International Clinical Psychopharmacology·Naveen Manohar PaiGeetha Desai

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