Safety and effectiveness of favipiravir for novel coronavirus (COVID-19): a rapid review of available evidence

 Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) appeared for the first time in December 2019 in Wuhan, China. Due to the lack of unified and integrated evidence for favipiravir, this study was conducted with the aim of rapid reviewing the existing evidence to help evidence-based decision-making on the therapeutic potential of this drug in the treatment of COVID-19 patients.

 This study is a rapid health technology assessment (HTA). By searching pertinent databases, the research team collected relevant articles and tried to create a policy guide through a thematic approach. This rapid review was done in four steps: 1) searching for evidence through databases, 2) screening the evidence considering eligibility criteria, 3) data extraction, and 4) analyzing the data through thematic analysis.

 After applying the entry criteria, four studies were finally found (a clinical trial that "the publisher temporarily removed the article from the journal's site" and three review studies). After searching the sources mentioned in the mentioned articles, two ongoing clinical trials were found in China. Also, by searching the clinical trial site, www.clinicaltrials.gov, five clinical trial studies were found during the search. The result of the search in the clinical trial registration system in Iran was a study that is in the process of patient’s recruiting. A limited number of other articles have been found, mostly in the form of reflections from physicians or researchers and letters to the editors who have predicted the drug's performance on the SARS-CoV-2 virus, which needs further clinical study for being approved

With the available evidence, it is not possible to make a definite conclusion about the safety and efficacy of this drug in the treatment of patients with COVID-19.