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Reuters
Experts warn that remdesivir should not be seen as a “magic bullet”
The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has authorized the emergency use of remdesivir of the Ebola medication to treat the coronavirus.
The authorization means that the antiviral medication can now be used in people hospitalized with severe Covid-19.
A recent clinical trial showed that the drug helped shorten recovery time for people who were seriously ill.
But FDA emergency authorization is not the same as formal approval, which requires a higher level of review.
Experts have also warned that the drug, which was originally developed to treat Ebola and is produced by the pharmaceutical company Gilead, should not be seen as a “magic bullet” for the coronavirus.
- What is the most promising coronavirus drug?
During a meeting with US President Donald Trump in the Oval Office, Gilead Chief Executive Daniel O’Day said that FDA clearance was an important first step. The company would donate 1.5 million vials of the drug, he said.
FDA Commissioner Stephen Hahn also said at the meeting: “It is the first licensed therapy for Covid-19, so we are very proud to be a part of it.”
What do we know about remdesivir?
President Trump has been a vocal advocate of remdesivir as a potential treatment for the coronavirus.
In its clinical trial, the US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. USA (NIAID) found that remdesivir reduced the duration of symptoms from 15 days to 11. The trials involved 1,063 people in hospitals around the world. Some received the medication and others received a placebo (dummy) treatment.
Dr. Anthony Fauci, who heads the NIAID, said that remdesivir had “a clear, significant, and positive effect in decreasing recovery time.”
However, while remdesivir may aid recovery, and possibly prevent people from having to be treated in intensive care, the trials did not give any clear indication of whether it can prevent coronavirus deaths.
New York Nursing Home Deaths
The news of the possible treatment comes when a nursing home in New York reports 98 coronavirus-related deaths.
The Isabella Geriatric Center in Manhattan said 46 of its residents died after testing positive, while the other 52 were suspected of having the virus.
And Dr. Fauci has been barred from testifying next week before a congressional committee examining the Trump administration’s response to the pandemic.
“While the Trump administration continues its government-wide response to Covid-19, including the safe opening of the United States again and streamlining vaccine development, it is counterproductive to have the same people involved in those efforts that appear in Congress”. House spokesman Judd Deere said in a statement.
In other coronavirus news:
- Irish Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has said the country will begin lifting its blockade on May 18, “slowly and gradually.”
- India has also extended its restrictions for two weeks after May 4
- The World Health Organization (WHO) has defended its response to the early stages of the coronavirus outbreak in China, saying it “wasted no time”
