SIGNIFICANCE OF CHLOROQUINE AND HYDROXYCHLOROQUINE USED FOR COVID-19 TREATMENT IN FORENSIC TOXICOLOGY

Abstract

In late December 2019, a cluster of cases with severe acute respiratory pneumonia infection were reported in Wuhan. Pharmaceutical laboratories identied the cause as novel coronavirus for this epidemic. It took only a few months for this strong RNA virus to spread over other countries and become a pandemic of global threat. WHO declared this coronavirus disease (COVID-19) as a public health crisis and soon enough the lockdowns were implied to contain its spread. It is believed that nCoV originated from bats in China and then reached humans, but no viable supporting evidence has been reported for this rumor. The treatment for COVID symptoms is broadly grouped into the vaccine for inhibiting viral growth and replication, and using therapeutic drugs based on the symptoms developed. Some of the potential repurposed antiviral drugs like Chloroquine and its analog, Hydroxychloroquine are reported to efciently help treat this virus. Studies have also reported that high doses and prolonged use of these two drugs tend to cause ill health. Acute and Chronic poisoning is known to produce adverse retinal, cardiac, and neuromyopathic toxicity. This review is primarily focused on highlighting such harmful effects and their great relevance as a global threat in forensic toxicology.