Introduction : The pandemic caused by SARS-CoV-2 has put the global scientific community in an accelerated pace of research for an effective treatment for COVID-19. Objective : To identify and evaluate drugs in Latin American protocols of pharmacological treatment for COVID-19. Méthode : The evidence and mega trial results available to date on the most frequent medications are analyszed. Résultats : The most common drugs in national protocols are hydroxychloroquine, lopinavir/ritonavir, and remdesivir. None of the drugs that collect the most data from clinical studies, with the except for dexamethasone in a small subgroup of patients, so far showed significant differences in mortality. Conclusions : The emerging situation of COVID-19 has determined hasty and controversial decision-making based on questionable and/or low-quality studies. This highlights the provisional nature of the information and the possibility of generating changes as more results become available. Advance medication authorization exposes a known problem. Although regulatory agility is required at this time, speed should not overlap with basic ethical standards and trust in evidence.

Introduction: The pandemic caused by SARS-CoV-2 has put the global scientific community into an accelerated pace of research for an effective treatment for COVID-19. Objective: To identify and evaluate drugs in Latin American protocols of pharmacological treatment for COVID-19. Method: The evidence and mega trial results available to date on the most frequent medications are analyzed. Results: The most common drugs in national protocols are hydroxychloroquine, lopinavir/ritonavir, and remdesivir. None of the drugs that collect the most data from clinical studies, with the exception for dexamethasone in a small subgroup of patients, so far showed significant differences in mortality. Conclusions: The emerging situation of COVID-19 has determined hasty and controversial decision-making based on questionable and/or low-quality studies. This highlights the provisional nature of the information and the possibility of generating changes as more results become available. Advance medication authorization exposes a known problem. Although regulatory agility is required at this time, speed should not overlap with basic ethical standards and trust in evidence.

Introduction: The pandemic caused by SARS-CoV-2 has put the global scientific community in an accelerated pace of research for an effective treatment for COVID-19. Objective: To identify and evaluate drugs in Latin American protocols of pharmacological treatment for COVID-19. Method: The evidence and mega trial results available to date on the most frequent medications are analyzed. Results: The most common drugs in national protocols are hydroxychloroquine, lopinavir/ritonavir, and remdesivir. None of the drugs that collect the most data from clinical studies, with the except for dexamethasone in a small subgroup of patients, so far showed significant differences in mortality. Conclusions: The emerging situation of COVID-19 has determined hasty and controversial decision-making based on questionable and/or low-quality studies. This highlights the provisional nature of the information and the possibility of generating changes as more results become available. Advance medication authorization exposes a known problem. Although regulatory agility is required at this time, speed should not overlap with basic ethical standards and trust in evidence.

مقدمة: وضع الوباء الناجم عن فيروس كورونا 2 المرتبط بمتلازمة الجهاز التنفسي الحادة الوخيمة المجتمع العلمي العالمي في وتيرة متسارعة من البحث من أجل علاج فعال لكوفيد-19. الهدف: تحديد وتقييم الأدوية في بروتوكولات أمريكا اللاتينية للعلاج الدوائي لـ COVID -19. الطريقة: يتم تحليل الأدلة ونتائج التجارب الضخمة المتاحة حتى الآن على الأدوية الأكثر شيوعًا. النتائج: الأدوية الأكثر شيوعًا في البروتوكولات الوطنية هي هيدروكسي كلوروكوين ولوبينافير/ريتونافير وريميديسيفير. لم تظهر أي من الأدوية التي تجمع أكبر قدر من البيانات من الدراسات السريرية، باستثناء ديكساميثازون في مجموعة فرعية صغيرة من المرضى، اختلافات كبيرة في الوفيات حتى الآن. الاستنتاجات: حدد الوضع الناشئ لـ COVID -19 عملية صنع القرار المتسرعة والمثيرة للجدل بناءً على دراسات مشكوك فيها و/أو منخفضة الجودة. وهذا يسلط الضوء على الطبيعة المؤقتة للمعلومات وإمكانية إحداث تغييرات مع توفر المزيد من النتائج. يكشف التصريح المسبق للأدوية عن مشكلة معروفة. على الرغم من أن المرونة التنظيمية مطلوبة في هذا الوقت، إلا أنه لا ينبغي أن تتداخل السرعة مع المعايير الأخلاقية الأساسية والثقة في الأدلة.