Papers of the Week

Introduction In the present study, the combination of two tablets, one with Aspirin and Promethazine and the other with vitamin D3, C, and B3 along with zinc and selenium supplementation was proposed as an intervention (APMV2020). The ingredients in the formulation represent a precise, tailored therapy for the symptoms of COVID-19, combined with natural constituents to help the body itself build immunity to recover from infection. The present study was conducted to clinically validate the safety and efficacy of the APMV2020 tablets. Trial design The present trial is a randomized, multicentric, controlled clinical trial involving 260 mild to moderate COVID-19 patients. The treatment duration was of 10 days. Methodology The subjects were randomized to receive either the control intervention (clinical management protocol for COVID-19 advocated by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) or the test intervention (treatment with APMV2020 tablets along with the standard control treatment. The assessment days were baseline, days five and 10. Results APMV2020 significantly (<0.05) improved symptoms of COVID-19 like cough, myalgia, headache, and anosmia as compared to the control group. APMV2020 treatment also reduced inflammatory markers like lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), ferritin, and C-reactive protein (CRP). Conclusion APMV2020 can prove as a good candidate to be integrated into the COVID-19 management protocol. As it can offer speedy clinical recovery to reduce the burden on healthcare infrastructure, second, the combination shows significant anti-inflammatory potential to improve prognosis, and lastly, the immunomodulatory properties offer long-term protection that can help in combating long COVID symptoms and complications.