Randomized Study of Rivaroxaban vs Placebo on Disease Progression and Symptoms Resolution in High-Risk Adults With Mild Coronavirus Disease 2019.

BACKGROUND: Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 infection may be associated with a prothrombotic state, predisposing patients for a progressive disease course. We investigated whether rivaroxaban, a direct oral anticoagulant factor Xa inhibitor, would reduce coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) progression. METHODS: Adults (N = 497) with mild COVID-19 symptoms and at high risk for COVID-19 progression based on age, body mass index, or comorbidity were randomized 1:1 to either daily oral rivaroxaban 10 mg (N = 246) or placebo equivalent (N = 251) for 21 days and followed to day 35. Primary end points were safety and progression. Absolute difference in progression risk was assessed using a stratified Miettinen and Nurminen method. RESULTS: The study was terminated after 497 of the target 600 participants were enrolled due to a prespecified interim analysis of the first 200 participants that crossed the futility boundary for the primary efficacy end point in the intent-to-treat population. Enrollees were 85% aged <65 years; 60% female; 27% Hispanic, Black, or other minorities; and 69% with ≥2 comorbidities. Rivaroxaban was well tolerated. Disease progression rates were 46 of 222 (20.7%) in rivaroxaban vs 44 of 222 (19.8%) in placebo groups, with a risk difference of -1.0 (95% confidence interval, -6.4 to 8.4; P = .78). CONCLUSIONS: We did not demonstrate an impact of rivaroxaban on disease progression in high-risk adults with mild COVID-19. There remains a critical public health gap in identifying scalable effective therapies for high-risk people in the outpatient setting to prevent COVID-19 progression.

Clinical trials in the pandemic age: What is fit for purpose?

It is critical to ensure that COVID-19 studies provide clear and timely answers to the scientific questions that will guide us to scalable solutions for all global regions. Significant challenges in operationalizing trials include public policies for managing the pandemic, public health and clinical capacity, travel and migration, and availability of tests and infrastructure. These factors lead to spikes and troughs in patient count by location, disrupting the ability to predict when or if a trial will reach recruitment goals. The focus must also be on understanding how to provide equitable access to these interventions ensuring that interventions reach those who need them the most, be it patients in low resource settings or vulnerable groups.  We introduce a website to be used by The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Wellcome Trust, and other funders of the COVID Therapeutics Accelerator that accept proposals for future clinical research. The portal enables evaluations of clinical study applications that focus on study qualities most likely to lead to informative outcomes and completed studies.