COVID-19 antiviral pill is effective by y 89% in high-risk cases, the US company Pfizer revealed.
The company affirmed that the new treatment cuts the risk of hospitalisation or death by 89% in vulnerable adults.
The drug – Paxlovid – is intended for use soon after symptoms develop in people at high risk of severe disease.
The Pfizer drug, known as a protease inhibitor, can block an enzyme the virus needs in order to multiply. When taken alongside a low dose of another antiviral pill called ritonavir, it stays in the body for longer.
The company’s chairman and chief executive Albert Bourla said the pill had “the potential to save patients’ lives, reduce the severity of Covid-19 infections, and eliminate up to nine out of 10 hospitalisations”.
Earlier yesterday, Britain has approved COVID-19 antiviral pill jointly developed by Merck and Ridgeback Biotherapeutics.
Thus, Britain becomes the first country in the world to take the move.
“Today is a historic day for our country. The UK is now the first country in the world to approve an antiviral,” said health minister Sajid Javid.
“This will be a game-changer for the most vulnerable and the immunosuppressed, who will soon be able to receive the ground-breaking treatment,” he added.
