The role of Glutathione as an adjunct therapy in the treatment of patients with COVID-19-Related Acute Respiratory Syndrome
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Covid-19 is a novel coronavirus disease that has been (SARS-CoV-2) responsible for a worldwide pandemic of infectious pneumonia associated with severe acute respiratory syndrome. Although in most cases the disease can be resolved on its own, in severe or critical cases, patients can ultimately pass away, mainly due to the diffuse and massive alveolar damage associated with disease progression. One in four patients will be admitted to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU). A constant characteristic in severely affected patients is the exacerbated systemic inflammatory response. This is attributed to the excessive immune response mediated by cytokine secretion, which therefore causes acute lung injury, acute respiratory distress syndrome, multiple organ failure and even death. Currently, there are no effective antiviral agents and there are no fully elucidated or validated therapeutic options that can halt disease progression in some patients. Therefore, there is an urgent need for new treatments to delay the excessive inflammatory response and accelerate the repair of functional lung tissue in these patients. Glutathione may fit these criteria because it has some properties which can be associated with antiviral effects and it also participates in immune responses with the ability to balance oxidative stress.