[ad_1]
An Ebola drug has been developed to treat US President Donald Trump, who is infected with the coronavirus. Remdesivir has come a long way in recent months and has now been shown to be an effective aid in treating more severe viral patients. However, experts warn everyone not to treat the product as a panacea.
According to Hungarian time, the news came around midnight on Friday, according to which Donald trump He also contracted the coronavirus. Although the President of the United States is fine, his doctor recommended Walter Reed in a military hospital will spend as a precautionary measure. The news also reported that Trump had one Remdesivir treated with a drug called Because one of the most powerful people in the world is treated with this drug, among other drugs, many may think that Remdesivir is a panacea for the coronavirus. However, the image has many more nuances than that.
It was developed against Ebola
Originally developed to treat Ebola and Marburg virus infections, the drug is not entirely new, it exploded into public consciousness at the start of the epidemic as a promising remedy for the coronavirus.
As early as February, research on an experimental antiviral drug called Remdesivir was well advanced. Developed against Ebola by Gilead Sciences American biotech company called. The drug, as it is said, inhibits the synthesis of ribonucleic acids necessary for the growth of RNA viruses. The drug for intravenous administration has a wide spectrum of antiviral properties.
Previous experiments with Remdesivir in animals (mice, monkeys) were very successful.
And in January, it was given to a 35-year-old American coronavirus patient whose condition showed dramatic improvement after the injection and was eventually cured from the hospital.
Then the National Institutes of Health (NIH) began testing the drug more widely.
Results in rapid improvement
Gilead, realizing the changing circumstances, after the first successful action, began to produce the product in large quantities already in January. A report by researchers at the University of Chicago published in April showed that
With Remdesivir, rapid improvement can be achieved in coronavirus patients.
The research examined 125 patients, 113 of whom had severe symptoms and some of them were hooked up to a ventilator. The patients received the drug as an infusion, and some were able to be taken off the ventilator after one day. Most of the participants in the experiment were discharged from the hospital after six days. Thus, the substance reduced the fever in several cases and also improved their breathing difficulties.
As a result of the story, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued an emergency license for the drug in May.
It is also licensed in the European Union.
Studies continued quickly and effectively, and in April the European Medicines Agency (EMA) issued a recommendation on how Remdesivir should be used to treat coronavirus infection in the European Union.
Finally, in July, the European Commission granted a conditional marketing authorization for the drug, the active substance remdesivir, called Veklury, for severe cases of coronavirus. It was the first drug against coronavirus authorized by the EU.
The approval was issued through an expedited procedure shorter than the usual 67-day procedure, following the recommendations of the European Medicines Agency.
Then, in August, the European Commission agreed with Gilead to make the drug available to patients in the European Union and the United Kingdom in the coming months. Therefore, it became the first approved antiviral treatment method for coronavirus in Europe.
All decisions regarding distribution between Member States are the exclusive competence of the committee.
However, it is not considered a panacea.
Although the Remdesivir story has received a lot of attention in the press, virologists and healthcare professionals point out that it is not yet the drug we are longing for.
Imre Kacskovics, the Dean of Eötvös Loránd TTK University, in an interview with Forbes, stressed that the European authorization of Remdesivir is an important step, but it is not the final solution. “The goal would be to prevent the patient from reaching the state where the drug is already being used.” added.
He shares this view Jakab Ferenc virologist, head of the virology research group at the University of Pécs. “Remdesivir may not be effective in preventing coronavirus infection, but it is effective in treating it” he said in an earlier television interview.
“There is also an intravenous product that improves the condition of patients, helps them avoid intensive care, possibly a ventilator, and it can also be useful in treating critically ill patients. This is Remdesivir,” he said. János Slavik, chief infectologist at South Pest Central Hospital in a previous interview with Origó.
[ad_2]
