2.2. Treatment Regime
BLIND
The participants were instructed to take one untagged pill daily for 12 months. Containers of pills were allocated by patient serial numbers, with the pharmacy blind to the content of the pills. Pills for the study group contained 400 mg of HCQ (plaquenil). Placebo pills for the control group contained calcium. Patients who did not comply with the treatment given, did not attend the follow-up examination or withdrew their consent were excluded from the analysis.