Remdesivir Shows Promising Results in Phase 3 Trial for COVID-19 Patients

July 21, 2020 News /BioValleyBIOON /——The latest announcement from Gilead, the manufacturer of the antiviral drug remdesivirClinical TrialThe results show more good news regarding the efficacy of this drug against COVID-19.

Gilead Sciences recently stated that in a trial involving more than 1,100 patients, remdesivir was associated with improved recovery, reducing the risk of death by 62% compared to standard care. The study also showed that 74% of patients treated with remdesivir recovered by day 14 of treatment, compared to only 59% of those receiving standard care.

Image source: https://cn.bing.com

Recently published study results stem from a comparative analysis of 312 patients treated with remdesivir in the Phase 3 SIMPLE-Severe trial and 818 patients who did not participate in the trial and received standard care. Gilead reported that the mortality rate on day 14 was 7.6% among patients treated with remdesivir, compared to 12.5% among those who did not receive the drug. Certain COVID-19 patients benefited more from the medication than others. Researchers found that Black patients, in particular, experienced better outcomes, and patients under 65 years of age fared better than older patients. Patients not requiring mechanical ventilation—those breathing room air or receiving low-flow oxygen—derived greater benefit than those on ventilators.

These results were obtained in a virtual COVID-19Meetingpublished online, not in a peer-reviewed journal. Gilead also emphasized that these findings should be considered preliminary and require prospectiveClinical Trialsconfirmed in.

Gilead stated that the latest analysis of its "Compassionate Use Program" showed that 83% of 77 pediatric patients and 92% of 86 pregnant and postpartum women had recovered by Day 28. All these patients had varying degrees of COVID-19 and received treatment with remdesivir. To further investigate these patient populations, Gilead recently announced a global, open-label Phase 2/3 clinical trial to evaluate the safety, tolerability, and efficacy of remdesivir in patients aged 0 to 18 years, and is collaborating on a study involving pregnant women. (Bioon.com)