Baby’s Eyes Turn from Brown to Bright Blue After COVID-19 Treatment

The brown eyes of a baby in Thailand turned bright blue after he was given a COVID-19 medicine that is commonly used in Thailand.

The infant was prescribed favipiravir, which the Thai government approved for use in babies with mild to moderate COVID-19 symptoms, according to the New York Post.

Japan, Russia, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, Moldova and Kazakhstan have all approved the drug for use. Italy gave the drug emergency approval in 2020, which was the year the pandemic struck.

The drug has received favorable reviews in the U.S., but the Food and Drug Administration has not approved it for use in the United States.

A report on the case showed up in the April 2023 issue of the medical journal Frontiers in Pediatrics. No date of the case was furnished in the study.

“This case report highlights the need for monitoring of favipiravir therapy in children due to the potential side effect of corneal discoloration, which has not yet had its long-term effects identified,” the study noted.

The study acknowledged that diarrhea and other side effects, including temporary visual blurring, have been recorded with the use of the drug.

The study also reported that incidences of strange coloration have been seen before.

“In addition to the potential for corneal discoloration, favipiravir has also been shown to cause fluorescence in human hair and nails. This adverse effect may be due to the drug, its metabolites, or additional tablet components such as titanium dioxide and yellow ferric oxide,” the study said.

“It is crucial to monitor and report such cases to gain a comprehensive understanding of the potential effects of medication on corneal discoloration and their resolution, particularly among children, as the incidence of this adverse event remains uncertain,” the study noted.

Within just 18 hours of the first dose, the boy’s mother noticed his eyes turned a bright blue color

The study reported that about 18 hours after the baby was given the drug, his mother noticed his eyes had turned bright blue.

The six-month-old boy’s eyes are naturally dark brown. He was diagnosed with Covid and given favipiravir as a treatment – making him the youngest patient to receive the drug

The baby’s eyes returned to their normal color after about five days. The baby’s mother ceased giving the child the drug after the eye color change.

The study recorded that there did not seem to be any damage to the baby’s eyesight.

The case was the second involving the drug.

In 2021, a 20-year-old man in India experienced a change in eye color after taking the drug. He stopped taking the drug, and the next day his eye color returned to normal.

The study noted that “Despite the potential for adverse effects, favipiravir remains the mainstay of oral antiviral treatment in Thailand for children with COVID-19. “

“However, recent research has raised concerns regarding the safety and efficacy of favipiravir. The Prevent Severe COVID-19 study showed that patients with COVID-19 should not be treated with favipiravir, given its lack of demonstrated efficacy as measured by time to sustained clinical recovery, progression to severe COVID-19, and cessation of viral shedding,” the study said.