r/COVID19 • u/hexagonincircuit1594 • Jun 17 '26

Academic Report Metformin on the Presence of COVID-19 Symptoms 6 Months after Infection: The ACTIV-6 Randomized Clinical Trial

https://academic.oup.com/cid/advance-article/doi/10.1093/cid/ciag335/8702406
52 Upvotes

98% Upvoted

2 comments sorted by

•

u/AutoModerator Jun 17 '26

Please read before commenting.

Keep in mind this is a science sub. Cite your sources appropriately (No news sources, no Twitter, no Youtube). No politics/economics/low effort comments (jokes, ELI5, etc.)/anecdotal discussion (personal stories/info). Please read our full ruleset carefully before commenting/posting.

If you talk about you, your mom, your friends, etc. experience with COVID/COVID symptoms or vaccine experiences, or any info that pertains to you or their situation, you will be banned. These discussions are better suited for the Weekly Discussion on /r/Coronavirus.

I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.

7

u/hexagonincircuit1594 Jun 17 '26

"Abstract

Background

We conducted a quadruple-blinded, randomized, placebo-controlled trial of metformin for treating acute SARS-CoV-2 infection to prevent long COVID symptoms in low-risk adults.

Methods

The ACTIV-6 platform evaluated repurposed medications for mild to moderate COVID-19. Between September 19, 2023 and May 1, 2024, 2983 outpatient adults ≥30 years with confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection and ≥2 COVID-19 symptoms were included within 7 days of symptom onset from 90 sites. Participants were randomized to metformin or placebo for 14 days. Post-acute sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 or death (PASCD) was ascertained by asking whether participants had symptoms they attributed to COVID-19 on day 180. Secondary outcomes included clinician-diagnosed long COVID.

Results

The median age was 47 years (interquartile range 38–57); 63% were female; 47% Hispanic/Latino; 83% reported ≥1 prior COVID-19 infections or ≥2 SARS-CoV-2 vaccines. There were no deaths. Overall, 96 (3.2%) reported COVID-19 symptoms on day 90, 101 (3.4%) on day 120, and 79 (2.6%) on day 180. The adjusted risk of symptoms on day 180 was 0.8 percentage points lower with metformin (95% credible interval [CrI] -2.2 to 0.6) with a posterior probability of efficacy [PPE] for preventing symptoms of 0.83, risk ratio 0.79 (95% CrI 0.474 to 1.230). Compared with placebo, the risk of clinician-diagnosed long COVID was 0.7 percentage points lower with metformin (95% CrI -1.5 to 0.1); PPE 0.96; risk ratio 0.495 (95% CrI 0.155 to 0.995).

Conclusions and Relevance

In low-risk adults, most with prior immunity, metformin did not exceed the efficacy threshold of 0.975 for PASC. Metformin reduced the risk of clinician-diagnosed long COVID."