COVID-19 therapeutics and clinical information

Find clinical guidance from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), AMA and other health and medical research organizations.

• AMA resource center: COVID-19 vaccines
• CDC: Vaccination Guidance During a Pandemic

COVID-19 therapeutics can be used to prevent or treat eligible  patients who have tested positive for COVID-19 and have mild to moderate symptoms. Prevention and early treatment for eligible patients can help improve patient outcomes, reduce stress on health care facilities, and save lives.

• CDC Health Advisory—Using Therapeutics to Prevent and Treat COVID-19
• NIH Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Treatment Guidelines
• ASPR: COVID-19 Therapeutics News and Updates
• CDC: Ten Clinical Tips on COVID-19 for Healthcare Providers Involved in Patient Care

FDA emergency use authorization (EUA)

In December 2021, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued an EUA for Merck’s molnupiravir and Pfizer’s Paxlovid for the treatment of mild-to-moderate COVID-19 in adults with positive results of direct SARS-CoV-2 viral testing, and who are at high risk for progression to severe COVID-19. 

• Molnupiravir (EUA 108)
• Paxlovid (EUA 105)

Post-COVID conditions are a wide range of new, returning, or ongoing health problems people can experience four or more weeks after first being infected with the virus that causes COVID-19. Even people who did not have COVID-19 symptoms in the days or weeks after they were infected can have post-COVID conditions.

• CDC: Evaluating and Caring for Patients with Post-COVID Conditions: Interim Guidance

Multisystem inflammatory syndrome (MIS) can affect children (MIS-C) and adults (MIS-A). MIS is a rare but serious condition associated with COVID-19 in which different body parts become inflamed, including the heart, lungs, kidneys, brain, skin, eyes or gastrointestinal organs.

More information is available from the CDC.

• CDC: Interim Guidance for Public Health Personnel Evaluating Persons Under Investigation  (PUIs)and Asymptomatic Close Contacts of Confirmed Cases at Their Home or Non-Home Residential Settings

• FDA: Coronavirus Disease 2019 Testing Basics
• FDA: FAQs on Testing for SARS-CoV-2
• CDC: COVID-19 Testing: What You Need to Know
• IDSA Guidelines on the Diagnosis of COVID-19: Molecular Diagnostic Testing
• Interim Guidelines for Collecting and Handling of Clinical Specimens for COVID-19 Testing
• Information for Health Departments on Reporting Cases of COVID-19