A nasal spray clinical trial is underway to prevent COVID-19. Baton Rouge General Rhinologist Dr. Henry Barham is overseeing the trial in Louisiana and said the spray works differently from the vaccine. The vaccine helps you build up antibodies to fight off the virus when you contract it.

“You can still get the virus, but the success is really at preventing severe illness and so what we’re studying is can we prevent people from getting the virus in the first place,” said Barham.

Clinical trial participants must be 18 and older and not have been diagnosed with COVID, but you can still participate if you been vaccinated. Barham said they are following participants for six weeks after use of the nasal spray and checking to see if the medication remains in your nose and isn’t absorbed elsewhere in the body.

“And then how well do people tolerate a nose spray and then how effective is it, meaning do we have anyone that gets COVID when they’re using the spray,” said Barham.

Barham said the spray is not necessarily a substitute for the vaccine, he said the spray compliments the vaccine. He said the spray is targeted to one part of the body as opposed to entering the bloodstream.

“This is different, this is your initial barrier so it’s kind of a different way of treating it but super exciting,” said Barham.

Barham said they are looking for around 90 additional participants for the study.

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