People, who suspect they have caught the novel coronavirus, should not take the popular drug ibuprofen without consulting a doctor, the World Health Organisation (WHO) said.
WHO gave the warning, on Tuesday, pointing to the ongoing research into possible negative effects.
WHO’s spokesman, Christian Lindmeier, told a Geneva news conference that there are no recent studies that link the anti-inflammatory drug with increased mortality rates, but he added that experts are currently investigating the matter.
“We recommend paracetamol, not ibuprofen in self-medication,’’ Lindmeier said.
The UN agency’s comments came after leading French health officials warned against using nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) against the coronavirus disease.
This group of pharmaceuticals includes ibuprofen, aspirin and other drugs.
A recent article in the medical journal “The Lancet” put forward the hypothesis that some drugs including ibuprofen might pose a risk for COVID-19 patients, who also suffer from high blood pressure or diabetes.
Lindmeier also reported that two WHO staff members have been infected with the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus that causes COVID-19 respiratory disease.
Several hundred WHO staffers started working remotely from home on Tuesday.
