Remdesivir was at the forefront of the battle against COVID-19. (File)
Gilead Sciences Inc. said Friday that additional data from an advanced stage study showed that its antiviral remdesivir reduced the risk of death and significantly improved the conditions of critically ill COVID-19 patients.
The company, which originally published the trial data in April, said the results need to be confirmed in clinical trials.
Remdesivir was at the forefront of the battle against COVID-19 after the intravenous drug helped shorten recovery times in the hospital during a clinical trial.
Several countries have approved the use of the treatment in severe patients, but there are concerns about the supply of the drug, which is also being tested in an inhaled version.
Gilead said it analyzed data from 312 patients treated in an advanced study and a separate retrospective real-world cohort of 818 patients with characteristics and severity similar to those in the study.
Gilead’s final stage study evaluated the safety and efficacy of the 5-day and 10-day durations of intravenous remdesivir in hospital patients with severe manifestations of COVID-19 caused by new coronavirus.
Columbia University Irving Medical Center Dr. Susan Olender said in Gilead’s statement that the analysis is based on an actual environment and is an important complement to clinical trial data, although not as robust as ‘a randomized controlled trial.
The results of the analysis of its advanced stage study showed that 74.4% of patients treated with remdesivir recovered on day 14 compared to 59.0% of patients receiving standard care, the company said.
The mortality rate for patients treated with remdesivir in the analysis was 7.6% on day 14, compared with 12.5% in patients not treated with remdesivir.
Gilead also stated that rates and likelihood of recovery were lower in patients who received hydroxychloroquine as well as remdesivir compared to patients treated with remdesivir who did not receive hydroxychloroquine.
Gilead shares rose 2% to $ 76.21 at the start of the session.
(With the exception of the title, this story was not edited by GalacticGaming staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
