A randomized controlled trial of teprenone in terms of preventing worsening of COVID-19 infection

Abstract

Background Some COVID-19 patients develop life-threatening disease accompanied by severe pneumonitis. Teprenone induces expression of heat-shock proteins (HSPs) that protect against interstitial pneumonia in preclinical models. We explored whether teprenone prevented worsening of COVID-19 infections. Methods This open-label, randomized, pilot phase 2 clinical trial was conducted at five institutions in Japan. We randomized patients hospitalized for COVID-19 with fever to teprenone or no-teprenone groups in a 1:1 ratio. We stratified patients by sex, age