A study conducted in Brazil to ascertain the effectiveness of Chloroquine in curing COVID-19 has been closed after some patients die of heart complications.
Chloroquine has been tipped by many as the cure for COVID-19, including United States President, Donald Trump.
The study, sponsored by the Brazilian state of Amazonas, involved 81 hospitalized patients in the city of Manaus.
About half the study participants were given a dose of 450 milligrams of chloroquine twice daily for five days, while the rest were prescribed a higher dose of 600 milligrams for 10 days.
Researchers observed heart arrhythmias in patients taking the higher dose, within three days of using the drugs.
By the sixth day of treatment, 11 patients had died, leading to an immediate end to the high-dose segment of the trial.
The researchers said the study did not have enough patients in the lower-dose portion of the trial to conclude if chloroquine was effective in patients with severe disease.
