A recent study (DE Freedberg et al. Gastroenterol 2020; DOI:https://doi.org/10.1053/j.gastro.2020.05.053. Famotidine Use Is Associated With Improved Clinical Outcomes in Hospitalized COVID-19 Patients: A Propensity Score Matched Retrospective Cohort Study, highlighted on AGA blog, indicates that famotidine may improve outcomes in those with COVID-19.

Methods: Freedberg et al collected data from 1620 patients who tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 no more than 72 hours following admission; 84 of the patients (5.1%) had received famotidine (any dose, form of administration, or duration; median dose of 136 mg) within 24 hours of hospital admission.

Key finding: After the authors adjusted for baseline patient characteristics, use of famotidine was independently associated with risk for death or intubation (adjusted hazard ratio 0.42, 95% CI, 0.21–0.85). This did not change after propensity score matching to balance covariables (hazard ratio 0.43, 95% CI 0.21–0.88).

My take: While these results indicate that famotidine may improve outcomes with COVID-19, a randomized controlled trial is needed to confirm these findings (currently one is underway to determine whether famotidine can improve clinical outcomes in hospitalized patients with COVID-19 (NCT04370262)).

AGA Blog Summary: Use of Famotidine Associated With Improved Outcomes of Hospitalized COVID-19 Patients

Related blog posts:

• COVID-19: Moral Distress and AJG Famotidine Study
• “Quietly’ Testing Famotidine for COVID-19