New Coronavirus Treatment Effect?...The 'Rediscovery' of AIDS Medication

Newly appointed Chinese Ambassador to Korea, Xing Haiming, is holding a press conference related to the novel coronavirus on the 4th at the main building of the Chinese Embassy in Jung-gu, Seoul. Photo by Moon Honam munonam@

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Jung-yoon] Interest in the therapeutic effects is rising as it has been reported that HIV treatments are being used for the novel coronavirus infection (Wuhan pneumonia), for which there is currently no cure. This is because some countries are using HIV treatments for patients with the novel coronavirus, and domestically, patients who received concurrent HIV treatment have recovered completely.

According to local media in Thailand on the 4th, the Thai Ministry of Health announced that a 71-year-old Chinese woman confirmed with the novel coronavirus showed improvement in symptoms after being treated with a combination of antiviral drugs used for HIV and influenza. This woman had repeatedly tested positive for the novel coronavirus for about 10 days after being hospitalized, but after treatment with the antiviral drug combination, she tested negative within 48 hours.

Medical staff explained that they administered a mixture of antiretroviral drugs used for HIV treatment, ritonavir and lopinavir, combined with the influenza treatment drug oseltamivir to the patient. The Thai health authorities are closely monitoring additional research results to verify whether the antiviral drug combination is effective in treating the novel coronavirus.

HIV is a virus that destroys immune cells, lowering immunity and causing various infectious diseases or tumors. AIDS refers to Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome, which occurs when immune function declines due to HIV infection, leading to opportunistic infections. When treating HIV infection, a therapy involving the simultaneous administration of three or more anti-HIV drugs is widely used.

Since there are no drugs or vaccines yet to treat the novel coronavirus, the medical community is also paying attention to the effects of HIV treatments. Chinese health authorities, having no effective measures after the spread of the novel coronavirus, are administering HIV treatments to patients. Beijing health authorities are administering the same HIV treatments, lopinavir and ritonavir, used in Thailand, to novel coronavirus patients at three hospitals in the area. These drugs were also used during the outbreaks of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) in 2003 and Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) in 2015.

It is also known that HIV treatments are being administered to novel coronavirus patients in South Korea. According to the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, HIV treatments are being given to patients number 1 and 4, who have severe pneumonia symptoms among the confirmed domestic cases. Jeong Eun-kyung, director of the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said, "I heard that antiviral drugs were administered in various reports and cases from other countries, and they were known to be effective against the novel coronavirus, so we are providing treatment accordingly," adding, "The Infectious Diseases Society is preparing clinical treatment guidelines, and after creating guidelines by linking domestic and international reports and cases, we plan to apply them while supplementing through subsequent cases."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.