{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2025,10,12]],"date-time":"2025-10-12T02:53:19Z","timestamp":1760237599442,"version":"build-2065373602"},"reference-count":8,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"11","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2020,6,4]],"date-time":"2020-06-04T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1591228800000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["IJERPH"],"abstract":"<jats:p>From a healthcare perspective, infection due to the novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 (severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2) and the ensuing syndrome called COVID-19 (coronavirus disease 2019) represents the biggest challenge the world has faced in several decades. Particularly worrisome are the high contagiousness of the virus and the saturation of hospitals\u2019 capacity due to overwhelming caseloads. Non-pharmaceutical interventions such as quarantine and inter-personal distancing are crucial to limiting the spread of the virus in the general population, but more tailored interventions may be needed at an individual level on a case-by-case basis. In this perspective, the most insidious situation is when an individual has contact with a contagious subject without adequate protection. If rapidly recognized afterwards, this occurrence may be promptly addressed through a post-exposure chemoprophylaxis (PEP) with antiviral drugs. This strategy has been implemented for other respiratory viruses (influenza above all) and was successfully used in South Korea among healthcare workers against the Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) coronavirus, by providing people who were exposed to high-risk contacts with lopinavir-ritonavir plus ribavirin. Initial experiences with the use of hydroxychloroquine to prevent COVID-19 also seem promising. Post-exposure chemoprophylaxis might help mitigate the spread of SARS-CoV-2 in the current phase of the COVID-19 pandemic.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/ijerph17113997","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2020,6,5]],"date-time":"2020-06-05T03:32:21Z","timestamp":1591327941000},"page":"3997","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":10,"title":["COVID-19: Time for Post-Exposure Prophylaxis?"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"17","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-5199-8451","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Ivan","family":"Gentile","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Clinical Medicine and Surgery\u2013Section of Infectious Diseases, University of Naples Federico II, Via Pansini 5, 80131 Naples, Italy"},{"name":"UNESCO Chair for Health Education and Sustainable Development, University of Naples Federico II, 80131 Naples, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Alberto","family":"Maraolo","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Clinical Medicine and Surgery\u2013Section of Infectious Diseases, University of Naples Federico II, Via Pansini 5, 80131 Naples, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-4556-6182","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Prisco","family":"Piscitelli","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"UNESCO Chair for Health Education and Sustainable Development, University of Naples Federico II, 80131 Naples, Italy"},{"name":"Section of Endocrinology and Metabolic Diseases, Department of Clinical Medicine and Surgery, University of Naples Federico II, Via Pansini 5, 80131 Naples, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Annamaria","family":"Colao","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"UNESCO Chair for Health Education and Sustainable Development, University of Naples Federico II, 80131 Naples, Italy"},{"name":"Section of Endocrinology and Metabolic Diseases, Department of Clinical Medicine and Surgery, University of Naples Federico II, Via Pansini 5, 80131 Naples, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2020,6,4]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","unstructured":"(2020, May 03). Who Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19)\u2014Events as They Happen. Updated 28 April 2020. Available online: https:\/\/www.who.int\/emergencies\/diseases\/novel-coronavirus-2019\/events-as-they-happen."},{"key":"ref_2","unstructured":"(2020, May 03). Who Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19)\u2014Situation Report 103. Available online: https:\/\/www.who.int\/docs\/default-source\/coronaviruse\/situation-reports\/20200502-covid-19-sitrep-103.pdf?sfvrsn=d95e76d8."},{"key":"ref_3","unstructured":"(2020, May 03). Who Report of the Who-China Joint Mission on Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19). Available online: https:\/\/www.who.int\/docs\/default-source\/coronaviruse\/who-china-joint-mission-on-covid-19-final-report.pdf."},{"key":"ref_4","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Okoli, G.N., Otete, H.E., Beck, C.R., and Nguyen-Van-Tam, J.S. (2014). Use of neuraminidase inhibitors for rapid containment of influenza: A systematic review and meta-analysis of individual and household transmission studies. PLoS ONE, 9.","DOI":"10.1371\/journal.pone.0113633"},{"key":"ref_5","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"42","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jhin.2018.09.005","article-title":"Post-exposure prophylaxis for Middle East respiratory syndrome in healthcare workers","volume":"101","author":"Park","year":"2019","journal-title":"J. Hosp. Infect."},{"key":"ref_6","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Lee, S.H., Son, H., and Peck, K.R. (2020). Can post-exposure prophylaxis for COVID-19 be considered as an outbreak response strategy in long-term care hospitals?. Int. J. Antimicrob. Agents., 105988.","DOI":"10.1016\/j.ijantimicag.2020.105988"},{"key":"ref_7","unstructured":"NIH (2020, May 03). ClinicalTrials.gov, Available online: https:\/\/clinicaltrials.gov\/ct2\/results?cond=COVID-19."},{"key":"ref_8","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"379","DOI":"10.1038\/d41587-020-00003-1","article-title":"Coronavirus puts drug repurposing on the fast track","volume":"38","author":"Harrison","year":"2020","journal-title":"Nat. Biotechnol."}],"container-title":["International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health"],"original-title":[],"language":"en","link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/1660-4601\/17\/11\/3997\/pdf","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2025,10,11]],"date-time":"2025-10-11T09:35:43Z","timestamp":1760175343000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/1660-4601\/17\/11\/3997"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2020,6,4]]},"references-count":8,"journal-issue":{"issue":"11","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2020,6]]}},"alternative-id":["ijerph17113997"],"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/ijerph17113997","relation":{},"ISSN":["1660-4601"],"issn-type":[{"type":"electronic","value":"1660-4601"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2020,6,4]]}}}