Chloroquine was first mentioned by Trump during Thursday’s press conference. Elon Musk has tweeted his support for using it to treat coronavirus as well.

As the drug hasn’t been approved by the U.S. Food And Drug Administration to treat  coronavirus, the Chinese experience may be useful as the American regulator studies the medication which has been endorsed by Trump as well as Tesla Inc. chief executive officer Elon Musk.

Chloroquine was among the first group of therapies Chinese scientists identified as being effective in curbing the new coronavirus. Clinical trials on about 130 patients demonstrated the drug’s ability to reduce the severity of the illness and speed up virus clearance, according to China’s Ministry of Sciences and Technology.

The drug comes with set-backs and side effects- Bloomberg reported:  Two days after the treatment guideline update, health authorities in Hubei province — China’s worst-hit region where the outbreak started and which accounted for majority of its over 80,000 patients — asked hospitals to closely watch for, and immediately report, any adverse side effects of chloroquine phosphate.

Bloomberg reported: The drug is known to have short-term side effects such as nausea, diarrhea and tinnitus while long-term use can irreversibly impair eyesight. It’s forbidden for pregnant women as it can cause congenital defects in babies China Health Commission revised the dosage in a Feb. 29 notice tightening chloroquine use. The drug cannot be given to pregnant women, those with heart disease, terminal liver and renal disease, retina and hearing loss and patients on antibiotics such as azithromycin and steroid. It is being given to patients  between 18 to 65 years of age for a seven-day treatment course.

FDA commissioner Stephen Hahn  said that “a large, pragmatic clinical trial” would be needed first to determine the drug’s usefulness before making it available to coronavirus patients. Hahn said he couldn’t “speculate about a timeline” for the drug’s availability.

Gateway pundit reported: There are now THREE international studies — China, Australia and France — that found that Chloroquine with Azithromycin Shows 100% Success Rate in Treating Coronavirus in 6 Days.

The next few weeks  will tell as to whether this drug the president is excited about, will actually help defeat this invisible enemy