We thank Drs Perricone et al for their thoughtful response1 to our manuscript, and agree that timing, dose and duration of colchicine will be important open questions should the agent be found to be helpful in COVID-19. Regarding the question of when in the COVID-19 course colchicine might be most efficacious, we postulated that earlier (ie, as an outpatient) might be better. In making this suggestion, we followed Perricone et al’s recommendation to apply clinical rheumatologic experience. In gout, colchicine seems to be most effective early in acute disease, compelling both the the American College of Rheumatology and the European League Against Rheumatism to recommend treating gout flares with colchicine only in the earliest stages of the attack (ie, within 1–2 days of onset)2 3; these recommendations suggest that administration of colchicine in the earliest stages of COVID-19 might be more effective than …