. 2020 May 23;53(4):505–512. doi: 10.1016/j.jmii.2020.05.013

Table 3.

Summary of recommendations on the use of non-anti-SARS-CoV-2 agents for the treatment of COVID-19.

Recommendation	Anti-bacterial agent	Anti-fungal agent	Anti-non-SARS-CoV-2 antiviral agent	Comments
National Institutes of Health⁴²	Insufficient data to recommend empiric broad-spectrum antimicrobial therapy in the absence of another indication			For critically ill patients
Infectious Diseases Society of America⁴³	N/A	N/A	N/A	No
Surviving Sepsis Campaign⁴⁴	Daily assessment for de-escalation and re-evaluation of the duration of therapy after initiating empiric antimicrobials, and spectrum of coverage based on the microbiology results and the patient's clinical status			In mechanically ventilated patients with COVID-19 and respiratory failure, empiric antimicrobials/antibacterial agents were suggested.
Canada⁴⁶	Empirical antibiotic should be based on the clinical diagnosis, local epidemiology, and susceptibility data.	N/A	Empiric therapy with a neuraminidase inhibitor should be considered for the treatment of influenza virus infection in patients with or at risk for severe disease under influenza endemic.	Empiric antimicrobials should be used in the treatment of all likely pathogens causing severe acute respiratory infection and sepsis within 1 h of initial patient assessment for COVID-19 patients with sepsis.
Unites Kingdom⁴⁸	An oral antibiotic is indicated in the following scenarios: (1) The likely cause is bacterial (2) It is unclear whether the cause is bacterial or viral and symptoms are more concerning (3) They are at high risk of complications Doxycycline is used as first-line treatment, whereas amoxicillin is used as alternative treatment.	N/A	N/A	Antibiotics are not used as treatment for or to prevent pneumonia if the infection is likely caused by SARS-CoV-2 and symptoms are mild. Dual antibiotics are not routinely used.
China⁴⁹	Mild patients use antibiotics, such as amoxicillin, azithromycin, or fluoroquinolones, as treatment against CAP; severe patients use empirical antibiotics to treat all possible pathogens.	NA	NA	Blind or inappropriate use of antibacterial drugs should be avoided.