Ontario has become the first province to list an inexpensive and well-known antidepressant as a treatment doctors can “consider” for patients with a mild COVID-19 infection in a bid to keep them out of hospital.
In the science table listing on Wednesday, a panel indicated that the drug fluvoxamine can be considered and prescribed to patients with a mild case who are at risk of having more severe symptoms.
Fluvoxamine is a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) antidepressant that is typically used to treat depression and obsessive-compulsive disorders.
“Right now, we're in a really unprecedented wave of Omicron and we have just a staggering number of patients getting infected,” Dr. Menaka Pai, associate professor of medicine at McMaster University and co-chair of the Ontario COVID-19 Science Advisory Table, told CTV News. “Our goal is to keep them safe, to keep them out of hospital and also to preserve our scarcest resource, which I would say is our hospital beds.”
The drug costs a little more than a dollar a day and would be taken for 15 days, starting with a small dose. In comparison, the antivirals medicines from Pfizer and Merck cost nearly $1,000 dollars per patient.
Studies have shown that the drug can cut hospital admissions due to COVID-19 by up to 30 per cent.
“When you look at all that data together, it is very likely that fluvoxamine prevents hospitalization in patients with mild COVID-19,” Pai said. “So patients who are not yet on oxygen, and if our goal in this wave of the pandemic is to stop patients with COVID from ending up in those scarce hospital beds, then that I think is a very important finding, indeed.”
Researchers at McMaster University monitored more than 1,500 unvaccinated COVID-19-positive patients for a month and gave them either the drug or a placebo.
Of those who received fluvoxamine, 10.6 per cent required treatment by a doctor for more than six hours or were hospitalized, while 15.7 per cent of the participants who received a placebo were hospitalized or needed physician treatment for more than six hours. When patients took all of their drugs, the noted beneficial effect went up to 65 per cent, the study found.
Dr. Edward Mills, the co-principal investigator of the trial, said the results could be a game-changer, particularly in developing countries with low vaccination rates.
“It’s a very large treatment effect, one that hasn’t been observed for any drug yet,” he told CTV News back in October when the study was published.
John’s Hopkins University has also endorsed the drug for use within seven days of symptoms, provided the patient is not in their third trimester of pregnancy.
While Ontario is the first province to list the drug as an option, Pai said other regions are also considering the medication as a possible preventative therapy.
Liberal MP Pam Damoff says she won't run again in the next federal election, saying she has experienced misogyny, disrespectful dialogue in politics and threats to her life.
Inspections are underway at more than one Loblaws location in Ottawa after complaints were filed about tall Plexiglass barriers.
Starting in September, public servants in the core public administration will be required to work in the office a minimum of three days a week. The Treasury Board Secretariat says executives will need to be in the office four days per week.
As multiple Durham police cruisers were chasing a robbery suspect on the wrong side of Highway 401 Monday night, an Ontario Provincial Police officer shared his concerns, telling a dispatcher, "Someone's going to get hurt."
Victims of a Brantford, Ont., woman who was sentenced to house arrest earlier this year for defrauding and deceiving doulas say they’re not surprised she’s been apprehended again on similar charges.
Archeologists have unearthed the skeletons of five people, missing their hands and feet, at a former Nazi military base in Poland.
An unrepentant Pierre Poilievre returned to the House of Commons on Wednesday to pepper the prime minister about his drug decriminalization policies after being booted the day prior for refusing to take back calling Justin Trudeau 'wacko' over his approach to the issue.
Shovels have hit the ground for constuction on Canada's LGBTQ2S+ national monument in Ottawa.
In a first-of-its-kind case, a B.C. tribunal has ruled on a dispute involving the non-consensual sharing of intimate images, awarding damages and issuing orders that the photos be destroyed and taken offline.
A suspect in a fatal shooting in Toronto’s east end last summer has been arrested in Charlottetown, just one week after he topped a list of Canada’s most wanted fugitives.
As protestors set up tent encampments at universities across Canada and the U.S.in support of Palestine, London, Ont.’s Western University finds itself no exception on Wednesday.
A judge has rejected a request from two McGill University students for a court injunction to limit where protesters can go on campus.
Dozens of London Drugs stores in Western Canada remained closed for the fourth straight day following a "cybersecurity incident," but some services returned Wednesday.
Defence lawyers told court they will argue alleged serial killer Jeremy Skibicki is not criminally responsible for the deaths of four Indigenous women by way of a mental disorder.
Victims of a Brantford, Ont., woman who was sentenced to house arrest earlier this year for defrauding and deceiving doulas say they’re not surprised she’s been apprehended again on similar charges.
A section of a highway collapsed after heavy rains in southern China, sending cars tumbling down a slope and leaving at least 36 people dead, authorities said Thursday.
Administrators and campus police at UCLA faced intense criticism Wednesday for failing to act quickly to stop an attack on a pro-Palestinian encampment on campus by counter-demonstrators who threw traffic cones and chairs, released pepper spray and tore down barriers.
Police shot and killed a Wisconsin student outside a middle school after receiving a report of someone with a weapon while class was in session Wednesday.
The Arizona legislature approved a repeal of a long-dormant ban on nearly all abortions Wednesday, sending the bill to Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs, who is expected to sign it.
Colombia says it will break diplomatic relations with Israel on Thursday over its actions in Gaza.
Prosecutors asked for a September retrial for Harvey Weinstein during a hearing Wednesday in Manhattan, the disgraced movie mogul's first court appearance since his 2020 rape conviction was overturned by an appeals court last week.
Shovels have hit the ground for constuction on Canada's LGBTQ2S+ national monument in Ottawa.
An unrepentant Pierre Poilievre returned to the House of Commons on Wednesday to pepper the prime minister about his drug decriminalization policies after being booted the day prior for refusing to take back calling Justin Trudeau 'wacko' over his approach to the issue.
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh says his party will support the federal budget, ending any speculation that the party could pull out of its deal with the minority Liberal government.
Citizens' Services Minister Terry Beech says 1,200 seniors have already visited a dentist and had their claims processed by the federal government's new dental care plan.
The number of young people experiencing eating disorders surged during the height of the pandemic as the social and economic costs skyrocketed too, a new pan-Canadian report has found.
The highly contagious norovirus is spreading across Canada, with some symptoms overlapping with other viruses. CTVNews.ca spoke with a health expert to find out how you can tell you have norovirus, the most common form of stomach flu, and what to do if you have it.
Nathaly Paola Castro Torres has a rare disorder called Laron syndrome that is caused by a genetic mutation. It stunts her growth but also provides a hidden silver lining: Her body is protected from chronic diseases such as cancer that often take life away long before old age.
In a first-of-its-kind case, a B.C. tribunal has ruled on a dispute involving the non-consensual sharing of intimate images, awarding damages and issuing orders that the photos be destroyed and taken offline.
A wealthy Silicon Valley-backed campaign to build a green city for up to 400,000 people in the San Francisco Bay Area has submitted what it says are enough signatures to qualify the initiative for the November election.
Pop superstar Dua Lipa is preparing to pull double duty as this week's 'Saturday Night Live' host and musical guest, with a little help from cast member Chloe Fineman.
The career of the Godfather of Canadian Hip-Hop, aka Maestro Fresh Wes, is getting its close-up in a new exhibition that opens May 15 at the National Music Centre.
Melissa McCarthy was completely unbothered by a comment Barbra Streisand left on her Instagram in which the legendary singer asked the Oscar-nominated actress if she was on Ozempic. In fact, she took it as a compliment.
Employees at Canada's two biggest railways have authorized a strike that could see thousands of workers walk off the job in three weeks if they are unable to reach new deals on contract demands.
Bank of Canada governor Tiff Macklem says he doesn't think the federal budget tabled last month will have much of an effect on inflation.
Plans to use a renovated cruise ship to house more than 600 workers as they build a liquefied natural gas facility near Squamish, B.C., have been voted down by the local council.
Have you ever wanted to rekindle an old friendship, but stopped short of actually reaching out?
A month after eight Norwegian Cruise Line passengers were stranded in Africa when their ship left without them because they were late getting back, a U.S. couple – ages 84 and 81 – were also left behind by the cruise line in Spain.
The City of Toronto is lowering adoption fees until Sunday to find homes for a number of dogs with “ridiculous, bizarre and terrible names” living in the North York crowded shelter.
Tampa Bay Lightning coach Jon Cooper apologized for making what he called an inappropriate analogy of putting skirts on goalies.
Oilers forward Zach Hyman hoping to teach 'Shaq Hyman' how to skate: 'For free'
The Nashville Predators kept their season alive with a 2-1 victory over the Vancouver Canucks in Game 5 of their first-round playoff series Tuesday.
Drivers in Saskatchewan will now lose their licence for a week and their vehicle for a month if they are caught committing certain high-speed and dangerous offences on the road.
Rolls-Royce is vastly expanding its factory in Chichester, England. The BMW subsidiary is adding five new buildings with construction planned to start next year.
On a three-lane test track along the Monongahela River, an 18-wheel tractor-trailer rounded a curve. No one was on board.
A group of SaskPower workers recently received special recognition at the legislature – for their efforts in repairing one of Saskatchewan's largest power plants after it was knocked offline for months following a serious flood last summer.
A police officer on Montreal's South Shore anonymously donated a kidney that wound up drastically changing the life of a schoolteacher living on dialysis.
Since 1932, Montreal's Henri Henri has been filled to the brim with every possible kind of hat, from newsboy caps to feathered fedoras.
Police in Oak Bay, B.C., had to close a stretch of road Sunday to help an elephant seal named Emerson get safely back into the water.
Out of more than 9,000 entries from over 2,000 breweries in 50 countries, a handful of B.C. brews landed on the podium at the World Beer Cup this week.
Raneem, 10, lives with a neurological condition and liver disease and needs Cholbam, a medication, for a longer and healthier life.
The lawyer for a residential school survivor leading a proposed class-action defamation lawsuit against the Catholic Church over residential schools says the court action is a last resort.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
A property tax bill is perplexing a small townhouse community in Fergus, Ont.
As of May 1, the new federally-run Canadian Dental Care Plan provides coverage for nearly two million low-income seniors. But finding a provider in B.C. could be tough.
The taps have been turned on for the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion – a national infrastructure project that overcame fierce public opposition, construction delays and cost-overruns that pushed the final bill to more than $34 billion.
Every provincial employee is receiving emails or memos directing them to change their passwords immediately, CTV News has learned.
As multiple Durham police cruisers were chasing a robbery suspect on the wrong side of Highway 401 Monday night, an Ontario Provincial Police officer shared his concerns, telling a dispatcher, "Someone's going to get hurt."
A female pedestrian has been taken to the hospital after being struck by a vehicle in Brampton.
A suspect in a fatal shooting in Toronto’s east end last summer has been arrested in Charlottetown, just one week after he topped a list of Canada’s most wanted fugitives.
An Okotoks, Alta., man was rushed to hospital on Wednesday afternoon, believed to have been shot in his own home.
High River RCMP are calling for increased highway awareness after an officer conducting a traffic stop on Highway 2 narrowly escaped being struck by a truck.
A day after Calgary's mayor called the Alberta government's decision to pull its funding for the low-income transit pass program "cruel," the province is reversing its decision.
Starting in September, public servants in the core public administration will be required to work in the office a minimum of three days a week. The Treasury Board Secretariat says executives will need to be in the office four days per week.
Two Ottawa non-profits, both serving the autism community, have suddenly closed their doors within the past week, leaving parents with fewer supports in the city.
Inspections are underway at more than one Loblaws location in Ottawa after complaints were filed about tall Plexiglass barriers.
A judge has rejected a request from two McGill University students for a court injunction to limit where protesters can go on campus.
Montreal police were called to investigate two stabbings early Wednesday evening in Rosemont-La-Petite Patrie and Cote-des-Neiges–Notre-Dame-de-Grace.
Canadian Airbus A220 jet assembly workers approved a five-year contract with more than three-quarters of votes in favor, their union said late on Wednesday, ending fears of a lockout at the planemaker's Montreal-area plant.
A man is in life-threatening condition after a Wednesday afternoon stabbing in Edmonton's core.
Edmonton Fire Rescue Services (EFRS) announced Wednesday morning Joe Zatylny will step down as its chief on May 10.
At this time last year, e-scooters had been patrolling Edmonton streets for almost a month. This year, they have yet to make their debut -- and likely won't until the end of this month at the earliest.
For the next month, thousands of shoppers from across the country plan to get their groceries anywhere other than Loblaws-owned stores. The move is an attempt to get the box chain to lower its prices, as frustration grows over the high price of food.
Local police say officers arrested Michael Bebee, the most wanted fugitive in Canada, in Charlottetown, P.E.I., Tuesday night.
The CEO of WestJet believes the reason the ultra low-cost airline model struggles to get off the ground in Canada is due to the country’s geography.
A motion before Winnipeg’s public works committee could make it easier for shoppers who stocked up on bulk packs of toilet paper and chicken breast to exit one of the city’s bustling Costco locations.
Mary Young walks across the Louise Bridge every day.
More than a dozen people are facing charges, the majority Winnipeggers, after an interprovincial drug bust that turned up millions of dollars in cash, drugs, guns, jewelry and luxury vehicles.
Sask. families who are required to travel outside of the province to access medical care for their children will receive financial support.
A former campground in Regina will be turned into an Indigenous ceremony site.
Weyburn RCMP say no one was injured in a single-vehicle semi rollover on Highway 18 near Beaubier, but the crash did force the closure of Highway 18.
Victims of a Brantford, Ont., woman who was sentenced to house arrest earlier this year for defrauding and deceiving doulas say they’re not surprised she’s been apprehended again on similar charges.
Hollywood heavyweight Arnold Schwarzenegger has caused quite a stir in a small Ontario town this week.
Waterloo regional police are looking for the person who shot into the window of a Waterloo business.
A Saskatchewan family won the bovine lottery after their cow gave birth to a rare set of quadruplets.
Saskatchewan employers will be required to tell new hires if they face a risk of violence in the workplace and to take actions against it starting on May 17.
Police officers and cadaver dogs have begun searching the Saskatoon landfill for answers in the Mackenzie Lee Trottier case.
Police in Sault Ste. Marie are investigating two sudden deaths on Boundary Road.
The remains of a 44-year-old person were found Tuesday morning on Delamere Road in French River, Ontario Provincial Police said.
French River officials say they’re hopeful things will start to improve now and that they’ve turned a corner from the high water levels on Lake Nipissing, the French River and other waterways going through their municipality.
Residents who live in the Hyde Park Place apartments in north London, Ont. said they are heartbroken after Old Oak Properties removed two geese nests, containing more than half a dozen eggs.
As protestors set up tent encampments at universities across Canada and the U.S.in support of Palestine, London, Ont.’s Western University finds itself no exception on Wednesday.
On Wednesday, councillors with the Municipality of South Bruce voted on a nuclear waste hosting agreement that could change the course of their community forever.
The man who police say killed Katherine Janeiro and left her body for friends to find, Robert MacQueen aka Bruce Ellis will stand trial for her murder.
A Barrie woman was all smiles after taking home a big lottery win to her husband.
Residents in a Barrie neighbourhood are being asked to check their property for suspicious substances or weapons.
The City of Windsor has filed its statement of defence following a wrongful dismissal lawsuit filed by a former senior employee.
An overseas manufacturer said it has developed electric vehicle batteries which can be charged in as much time as it takes to grab a coffee from Tim Horton's — and similar batteries are expected to be made by a Windsor-based EV research group sometime this year.
If you like engine revving, loud music and squealing tires, you could be landing yourself a ticket. That’s the message Wednesday from the Windsor Police Service as it launches the 2024 Anti-Noise Campaign.
A pro-Palestinian protest camp has formed at the University of Victoria in solidarity with the people of Gaza and with similar encampments that have sprung up on university and college campuses in opposition to the Israel-Hamas war.
Shauna Owens-Krahn lives on Bear Mountain in Langford. Four times a day she takes her dogs for walks through the trails near her home and carries bear spray, just in case.
Every provincial employee is receiving emails or memos directing them to change their passwords immediately, CTV News has learned.
Out of more than 9,000 entries from over 2,000 breweries in 50 countries, a handful of B.C. brews landed on the podium at the World Beer Cup this week.
An emaciated dachshund is now recovering thanks to a Good Samaritan who found the pup near a biking trail in Kelowna, according to the BC SPCA.
Search and rescue crews have been called in after a vehicle belonging to a missing senior was located near a rural intersection outside of Kelowna Tuesday.
Volunteers with ‘The Watch’ program in Lethbridge have been patrolling the city centre rain or shine for five years.
A Transportation Safety Board report says experience, recent training and safety equipment were key factors in a pilot surviving the crash of a firefighting plane south of Cranbrook in August 2022.
Facing a Tuesday night elimination game, Caelan Fitzpatrick responded with a hat trick to lead the Brooks Bandits past the Okotoks Oilers 5-1.
The City of Sault Ste. Marie will soon be charging owners of vacant properties a special tax.
A group of Sault Ste. Marie YMCA supporters working to save the facility from closure received a glimmer of hope at this week’s city council meeting.
Another incident at Algoma Steel has union officials questioning safety protocols at Sault Ste. Marie’s steel plant.
Richard Martin is spending this year's fishing season on land after he says a Royal Newfoundland Constabulary officer broke his left leg in three places during a protest last month that shut down the provincial legislature.
Tributes continue to pour in for Bob Cole as his family has confirmed a funeral will be held for the legendary broadcaster Friday in St. John's, N.L.
Legendary sportscaster Bob Cole was a Newfoundlander through and through, and his daughter says his connection to the province was 'everything' to him.
The Shopping Trends team is independent of the journalists at CTV News. We may earn a commission when you use our links to shop. Read about us.
