Randomised Evaluation of COVID-19 Therapy

Launched by UNIVERSITY OF OXFORD · May 7, 2020

Keywords

ClinConnect Summary

The RECOVERY trial is a study designed to find effective treatments for patients who are hospitalized with pneumonia caused by COVID-19 or other respiratory infections. Researchers are testing a variety of medications, including well-known drugs like corticosteroids and newer treatments like antiviral medications. The goal is to see which treatments can help prevent death in these patients.

To be eligible for this trial, patients need to be hospitalized and show signs of pneumonia, such as having a cough, difficulty breathing, or fever. They must also have a confirmed infection with either COVID-19, influenza, or another type of pneumonia that requires antibiotics. Participants can expect to receive one of the treatments being studied, and their progress will be closely monitored by healthcare professionals. This trial is important because it aims to improve outcomes for patients facing severe respiratory illnesses.

Gender

ALL

Eligibility criteria

• Inclusion Criteria:
• Patients are eligible for the study if all of the following are true:
• • (i) Hospitalised
• • (ii) Pneumonia syndrome
• In general, pneumonia should be suspected when a patient presents with:
• • 1. typical symptoms of a new respiratory tract infection (e.g. influenza-like illness with fever and muscle pain, or respiratory illness with cough and shortness of breath); and
• • 2. objective evidence of acute lung disease (e.g. consolidation or ground-glass shadowing on X-ray or CT, hypoxia, or compatible clinical examination); and
• • 3. alternative causes have been considered unlikely or excluded (e.g. heart failure).
• • However, the diagnosis remains a clinical one based on the opinion of the managing doctor (the above criteria are just a guide).
• (iii) One of the following diagnoses:
• • 1. Confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection (including patients with influenza co-infection)
• • 2. Confirmed influenza A or B infection (including patients with SARS-CoV-2 co-infection)
• • 3. Community-acquired pneumonia with planned antibiotic treatment (excluding patients with suspected or confirmed SARS-CoV-2, influenza, active pulmonary tuberculosis or Pneumocystis jirovecii pneumonia)
• Exclusion criteria:
• • (iv) No medical history that might, in the opinion of the attending clinician, put the patient at significant risk if he/she were to participate in the trial
• • Participants will be excluded if the attending clinician believes that there is a specific contra-indication to one of the active drug treatment arms (see Protocol Appendix 2; section 8.2, and Appendix 3; section 8.3 for children, and Appendix 4 for pregnant and breastfeeding women), or that the patient should definitely be receiving one of the active drug treatment arms then that arm will not be available for randomisation for that patient. For patients who lack capacity, an advanced directive or behaviour that clearly indicates that they would not wish to participate in the trial would be considered sufficient reason to exclude them from the trial.