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US pharmaceutical company Pfizer on Tuesday confirmed that Paxlovid, its new drug against COVID-19, has yielded effective results.
Pfizer pills may be the first truly effective treatment for coronavirus disease, along with molnupiravir, a drug developed by the pharmaceutical company MSD (Merck).
Vaccines continue to be the only significant tool against the pandemic, which has managed to reduce the number of critical cases with COVID-19, the number of hospitalizations and deaths. The drug for COVID-19 may prove useful even in poor countries, which have very low vaccination rates.
Paxlovid
According to data published by Pfizer, if taken within three days of the onset of symptoms, Paxlovid reduces the risk of hospitalization and avoids death by 89 percent (compared with those who do not take it and develop severe forms of the disease ). If given five days after the first symptoms, the risk drops to almost 88 percent.
These results are based on a trial involving approximately 2,246 unvaccinated volunteers with characteristics similar to a high risk of developing COVID-19 symptoms. Also, according to data published by Pfizer, 0.7 percent of participants who took Paxlovid were hospitalized four weeks after the start of the trial, while no deaths were recorded. In the group of volunteers who did not take such a drug, but a substance (placebo) the percentage was at 6.5.
Paxlovid is an antiviral that interferes with the mechanisms used by the coronavirus to multiply within the cells of infected people. Treatment consists of taking 30 tablets over five days of Paxlovid and ritonavir, another antiviral drug developed long ago against HIV. Taking this second medicine allows Paxlovid to stay active longer in the body to give better results.
In addition to high-risk patients, Pfizer is testing individuals with lower risk factors associated with COVID-19. Preliminary data released so far by the company show that the use of Paxlovid reduced the risk of hospitalization and death by 70 percent. Clinical trials involved people who were contracted primarily with the Delta variant of the coronavirus, the most prevalent since the summer in much of the world. Pfizer, however, predicted that in some laboratory tests, the new drug has been shown to be able to fight even the symptoms of COVID-19 caused by the Omicron variant.
Last month, Pfizer applied to the Food and Drug Administration for authorization to use Paxlovid, thanks to the first data on its efficacy and safety.
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