Experimental coronavirus treatment remdesivir shows promise in study where two thirds of patients improved
- Study sponsored by drug’s developer Gilead finds dozens of patients, including some on ventilators, improved after 10 days of treatment
- Experts urge caution due to small size of study and serious side effects reported in some cases
Two thirds of seriously ill Covid-19 patients saw their condition improve after receiving the experimental drug remdesivir, according to a study sponsored by its developer Gilead Sciences.
The drug was originally developed to treat diseases such as Ebola and has since been found to have antiviral qualities.
In a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine on Saturday, Gilead Science said clinical trials had been carried out among 53 patients.
“We cannot draw definitive conclusions from these data,” said Jonathan D Grein, director of hospital epidemiology at Cedars-Sinai Medical Centre in Los Angeles, and the lead author on the study. “But the observations from this group of hospitalised patients who received remdesivir are hopeful.”
Of these patients, 22 were in the United States, 22 in Europe or Canada and nine in Japan. They received 200mg injection of remdesivir on the first day, followed by 100mg daily for the remaining nine days of treatment.
Researchers said during a median follow-up period of 18 days, 36 patients on oxygen support had improved, including 17 out of 30 patients who were receiving mechanical ventilation. A total of 25 patients were discharged.