Colchicine doesn't seem to help with long COVID

Embargoed until: Publicly released: 2025-10-21 02:00

Australia; International; NSW

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Colchicine is not an effective treatment for long COVID, according to Aussie and international research which says we need to explore other therapies. The clinical trial involved 346 adults and found no difference in functional capacity, respiratory function, mental states, whole-body symptoms such as fatigue, or inflammatory markers between those treated with colchicine and those who received a placebo.

Media release

From: JAMA

Effectiveness of Colchicine for the Treatment of Long COVID

JAMA Internal Medicine
Original Investigation

About The Study: In this randomized clinical trial, among adults with long COVID, colchicine did not improve functional capacity, respiratory function, or inflammatory markers. These findings underscore the need to explore alternative therapeutic approaches for long COVID.

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Journal/
conference: JAMA Internal Medicine

Research:Paper

Organisation/s: George Institute for Global Health, The University of New South Wales

Funder: This trial was funded by Indian Council of Medical Research grant ECD/CSTPU/ Adhoc/COVID-19/13-2021-22. Role of the Funder/Sponsor: The funder had no role in the design and conduct of the study; collection, management, analysis, and interpretation of the data; preparation, review, or approval of the manuscript; and decision to submit the manuscript for publication. Conflict of Interest Disclosures: Dr Bangi reported personal fees from the Jivanrekha Multispeciality Hospital during the conduct of the study. Dr Bhalla reported grants from the George Institute for Global Health during the conduct of the study. Dr Jha reported personal fees from Vera, AstraZeneca, Biogen, Otsuka, Visterra, George Clinical, Boehringer Ingelheim, and Novartis outside the submitted work. No other disclosures were reported.

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