This is the first officially FDA-approved drug for COVID-19.
Although the drug is now approved, the approval does not extend to all groups.
Patients must weigh at least 40 kilograms (kg)about 88 poundsto receive remdesivir.
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What Is Remdesivir?
Remdesivir is a direct acting antiviral drug that inhibits viral ribonucleic acid (RNA) synthesis.
Coronaviruses, including SARS-CoV-2, are a family of single-stranded RNA genome.
Remdesivir has been proven to stop these viruses from replicating.
He helped make the COVID-19OpenData Portalto share COVID-19-related drug repurposing data and experiments for all approved drugs.
“But we didnt have 15 years; we didnt even have 15 weeks.”
Hall says he and his team were tasked with evaluating existing resources.
“They might not be approved yet, but hopefully theyve been in humans and we know theyre safe.
Were lucky enough to have lots of antiviral drugs.
But we didnt have 15 years; we didnt even have 15 weeks.
Right now, youve got to wait until youre sick enough to be in hospital to get remdesivir.
Who Should Take Remdesivir?
Remdesivir’s optimal patient population, dosing, and duration of treatment are not known.
What I think about any drug or any drug candidate doesnt really matter, Hall says.
What really matters is data from a well-controlled clinical trial.
Patients received either a 5-day or 10-day course of remdesivir or were given standard care.
Researchers found no difference in outcomes among the 10-day group, and little meaningful difference among the 5-day group.
However, it does raise questions about replicating findings, a hallmark of clinical research.
Whats Next for Remdesivir?
More clinical trials are underway, according to the Gilead Scienceswebsite.
The company is also in thefirst phase of developmentto formulate remdesivir as an inhaler.
The recent SARS and MERS outbreaks were fought through public health measures, not therapeutics.
“With remdesivir, were super lucky it existed,” Hall says.
“Were lucky it was being developed for Ebola.
Were lucky that it was available to be tested in humans now.
Because if you subtract remdesivir from the equation, I dont know what the next best thing is.
Theres no other drug approved for treating SARS-CoV-2 infection.
For the most recent updates on COVID-19, visit ourcoronavirus news page.
Food and Drug Administration.FDA Approves First Treatment for COVID-19.
