Anti-inflammatory drugs might not actually make COVID-19 worse
NSAIDs like ibuprofen are used throughout the world to treat fever and pain. Physicians cast doubt that they influence our immune response to the coronavirus (Pexels/)On Saturday, the French health minister, Olivier Véran, tweeted that taking anti-inflammatory drugs—even over-the-counter medications like ibuprofen, Advil, and Aleve—could worsen cases of COVID-19. “If you are already taking anti-inflammatory drugs or you have questions, ask your doctor for advice,” he tweeted in French. This advice, which was not backed by any peer-reviewed scientific paper or any other release of evidence, is raising eyebrows in the public health world.The class of drugs that Veran was calling out were, specifically, non-steroidal anti-inflammatories (NSAIDs), which are already more closely regulated in France than in most other countries, including the United States. NSAIDs like ibuprofen are used throughout the world to treat fever and pain.The Guardian reports that a spokesperson from Toulouse hospital in France explained that anti-inflammatories...