For the next few months Talk Evidence is going to focus on the new corona virus pandemic.

There is an enormous amount of uncertainty about the disease, what the symptoms are, fatality rate, treatment options, things we shouldn't be doing.

We're going to try to get away from the headlines and talk about what we need to know - to hopefully give you some insight into these issues.

This week:

(2.24) - Hydroxychloroquinine/chloroquinine - Robin Ferner, honorary professor of clinical pharmacology at the University of Birmingham explains why is it a potential therapeutic for covid-19, and why is it being hyped.

(12.45) - We use prognostic models to make treatment decisions, but they have to be well conducted. Lots of them are being created for covid-19, but their quality isn’t great. Statisticians Laure Wynants Maastricht University and Maarten van Smeden from Utrecht University have done a systematic review of these models, and explain what’s needed for them to be useful.

(26.30) PPE - specifically facemasks. What does the evidence say about their use by the public, and does the precautionary principle hold

Reading list:
COVID-19 rapid guideline: managing suspected or confirmed pneumonia in adults in the community
https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng165/chapter/4-Managing-suspected-or-confirmed-pneumonia

Chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine in covid-19
https://www.bmj.com/content/369/bmj.m1432

Prediction models for diagnosis and prognosis of covid-19 infection: systematic review and critical appraisal
https://www.bmj.com/content/369/bmj.m1328

What is the efficacy of standard face masks compared to respirator masks in preventing COVID-type respiratory illnesses in primary care staff?
https://www.cebm.net/covid-19/what-is-the-efficacy-of-standard-face-masks-compared-to-respirator-masks-in-preventing-covid-type-respiratory-illnesses-in-primary-care-staff/