Before Saying Farewell to Hydroxychloroquine Usage in Practice: Evaluation of Our Safety Data on Hydroxychloroquine Treatment in Children with COVID-19

Objective: This study aimed to evaluate the adverse effects of hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) in children with COVID-19. Material and Methods: This study was conducted between March-August 2020 at a referral tertiary hospital for pediatric infectious diseases in the Aegean Region of Turkey. All hospitalized children with COVID-19 who were received HCQ include in this study. An electrocardiogram (ECG) was performed prior to the initiation of HCQ and at certain times (first and 24 th hours of HCQ administration and two hours after the final dose of HCQ) during treatment. Adverse effects associated with HCQ were evaluated during the hospitalization and also the first and second months after discharge. Results: A total of 62 children with COVID-19 who administered HCQ treatment were evaluated. Of these, 35 (56.5%) were girls and 27 (43.5%) were boys. The mean age 13.7 ± 3.0 years (range 6.0 to 18.0 years). Prior to the admission, none of the patients had arrhythmia, cardiovascular disease, or any cardiotoxic drugs usage. There was no abnormality on the baseline and following ECGs during the treatment with HCQ. Thirteen patients had nausea (20.9%) and 10 patients (17.7%) had mild abdominal pain. None of the patients had no arrhythmia. Conclusion: No cardiac side effects were observed in our patients. However, it is not possible to give a general statement on the safety data of HCQ therapy without any randomized controlled large-scale studies.