NIH begins study of remdesivir with anti-inflammatory drug to treat COVID-19

REUTERS: The National Institutes of Health said Friday that they had begun a clinical study to test a combination of remdesivir and the anti-inflammatory baricitinib treatment of Gilead Sciences Inc. in patients with COVID-19.

The trial is currently enrolling adults hospitalized with COVID-19 in the United States and is expected to study the combination of treatment in more than 1,000 participants.

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Baricitinib, marketed under the brand name Olumiant by Eli Lilly and Co, was being tested as a possible treatment for hospitalized patients diagnosed with COVID-19.

Interest in remdesivir has been high since there are no approved treatments or vaccines for COVID-19, the respiratory disease caused by the coronavirus, which has caused more than 70,000 deaths in the country.

“We now have strong data showing that remdesivir decreases recovery time for people hospitalized with COVID-19 to a modest degree,” said Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, part of the National Institutes of Health.

Fauci said this study will examine whether adding an anti-inflammatory agent to remdesivir has additional benefits, including reduced mortality.

Earlier this month, the US Food and Drug Administration. USA He authorized the emergency use of the drug to treat COVID-19 and said its benefits outweighed the risks.

An earlier NIH trial showed that COVID-19 patients who received remdesivir had a statistically shorter recovery time compared to patients who received placebo.

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