A PATIENT with Covid-19 at the John Radcliffe Hospital has become the first to take part in a new drug trial for the virus.

The clinical trial will test whether Azithromycin, a commonly used antibiotic, can treat the symptoms of coronavirus in outpatients.

The Atomic2 trial, which is being led from Oxford, will enrol 800 people who are being assessed at hospital with Covid-19 but felt well enough to be cared for at home.

Half will receive Azithromycin for two weeks, while the rest will get regular care. Participants will also give samples of blood and samples from the nose so researchers can better understand the biology of the virus.

The first participant in the trial was recruited at the JR on Wednesday.

The trial, which has received funding from the National Institute for Health Research Oxford Biomedical Research Centre, as well as the Oxford University and company Pfizer, will take place across 15 sites across England, Wales and Scotland.

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It complements two other national trials which are testing Azithromycin in different categories of patients.

The trial’s Chief Investigator is Dr Tim Hinks of Oxford University's Nuffield Department of Medicine.

He said: “Azithromycin is an antibiotic with unusual anti-inflammatory and anti-viral properties, so it is being seen as a promising potential treatment for Covid-19.

“In Covid-19 patients, there is a window of opportunity of about two weeks when the disease progresses from mild symptoms, such as fatigue, fever and cough, to severe respiratory failure.

He added: “Azithromycin is safe, inexpensive and available worldwide, so if effective, it could be a very useful weapon in the fight against this pandemic.

"Even if we find that the drug is not effective against the symptoms of Covid-19, it is still an important finding."