Covid and Nasal Sprays for Prevention

“New study out today on azelastine (antihistamine) nasal spray for COVID-19 prophylaxis. This is available OTC in the US under the brand name Astepro.

N=450; azelastine group used the product 3x daily for 56 days. All participants RAT tested twice per week.

5/227 infections in azelastine group (2.2% incidence)

15/223 infections in placebo group (6.7% incidence)

Great results, and a similar reduction was also found for Rhinovirus infections.

This probably isn’t super surprising to many in the community - we’ve had good data on azelastine for a while now, but mostly the typical studies based on viral load reduction and duration of symptoms rather than prophylaxis, so it’s always great to get one of these studies for confirmation.

Would I immediately switch to using azelastine if I was already using iota-carrageenan? Probably not. Well, definitely not, because that describes me personally.

But this reaffirms it as a worthwhile option to consider, and the prophylaxis benefits make it a great choice if somebody is already shopping for options to treat allergic rhinitis.”

“Quick 🧵on the current state of Iota-carrageenan nasal sprays: Efficacy, safety, Betadine shortages, buying options for US & Can. markets.

I-C sprays are the only option on the market that have a real-world randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study backing them up. 1/14”

“Current nasal sprays offer limited protection against respiratory pathogens because they have a single mechanism of protection. They either neutralize pathogens or block their entry into the cells lining the nose, and they perform both tasks with limited efficacy.

‘We developed a drug-free formulation to block germs in three ways — the spray forms a gel-like matrix that enhances the capture of respiratory droplets, immobilizes the germs blocking their transport into the nasal lining, and effectively neutralizes them, preventing infection,’”

New, promising data on Profi Nasal Spray (aka PCANS) as prophylaxis for respiratory viruses:

“The researchers developed the formulation and studied its ability to capture respiratory droplets in a 3D-printed replica of a human nose. They showed that when sprayed in the nasal cavity replica, PCANS captured twice as many droplets as mucus alone.

April, 2023:

"These results show a potentially more rapid route to FDA approval, bringing a new commercial opportunity that could make the nasal sprays more readily available...not just potentially for COVID-19, but also for all respiratory viruses"

"Simple pH adjustment may enable a preventative Covid-19 nasal and throat spray

Higher pH makes a common metabolic inhibitor medication practical for nose and throat spray applications against COVID-19"

Starting thread on niclosamide:

"These researchers developed a prophylactic nasal spray and early treatment throat spray by repurposing niclosamide, a metabolic inhibitor previously used for 60 years for gut parasite infections." https://dukechronicle.com/article/2022/03/duke-university-scientist-coronavirus-covid-treatment-nasal-spray#:~:text=Niclosamide%20works%20by%20blocking%20three%20of%20the%20six,said.%20Formerly%2C%20niclosamide%20was%20FDA-approved%20in%20pill%20form.