Rita Wilson warns she experienced ‘extreme side effects’ after taking chloroquine

Rita Wilson, who announced she had contracted the coronavirus with her husband Tom Hanks last month, warned that taking chloroquine, a drug that has been touted by the White House as a “game changer,” caused her “extreme side effects.”

The couple has since recovered from their infection that was reported on March 11, after quarantining in Australia, where they were diagnosed with the illness.

Hanks cited milder symptoms than Wilson, who was given chloroquine for her treatment, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

Wilson said she was not sure if the drug worked or if her fever broke naturally. However, regardless of whether the drug worked, she said she thinks it caused “extreme side effects” that made her nauseous, dizzy and weakened her muscles.

She added, “people have to be very considerate about that drug. We don’t really know if it’s helpful in this case.”

President Trump has touted the drugs hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine as possible “miracle” solutions for treating the coronavirus, despite a lack of long-term research into its effects on COVID-19 patients.

The drugs, previously proven to treat infections such as malaria, have been issued an emergency-use authorization, which is still not a full approval for the drug’s treatment for the coronavirus.

Health officials told Wilson and Hanks they are now immune to the virus, as the couple volunteers to donate their blood to a study working on developing a vaccine for COVID-19.

Wilson added that she and Hanks feel “completely normal” with no lingering or residual symptoms of the virus.