The first COVID-19 pill. How does molnupiravir work? [WE EXPLAIN]
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Not amantadine or ivermectin, not “Polish drug for COVID-19”. Molnupiravir may prove to be the first pill to be prescribed to patients infected with the coronavirus. The manufacturer of the drug has just asked the US FDA for approval for its emergency use.

  1. In fact, a pharmaceutical arms race for the good of mankind has been going on since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic
  2. In parallel to the COVID-19 vaccines, drugs have also been developed that can be used in patients who test positive for coronavirus
  3. There are two Polish accents in this race, but everything indicates that the American concern Merck will be the first to introduce a COVID-19 tablet to the market
  4. More information can be found on the Onet homepage

Molnupiravir to be emergency approved? There is a request

Molnupiravir is a COVID-19 drug developed by Merck in collaboration with Ridgeback Biotherapeutics. The preparation was tested and found to be highly effective. Therefore, the study was discontinued and the company applied to the US FDA for approval so that it could be used now. A similar situation has previously happened with COVID-19 vaccines, which have also obtained approval for emergency use.

The study of molnupiravir was enrolled in 775 adult patients who had a mild to moderate COVID-19 infection, provided that their disease had been present for less than five days. The trial included participants from groups at risk of severe infection due to comorbidities such as diabetes, heart disease and obesity. The study was “blinded” – some people received a placebo. The others were given molnupiravir twice a day.

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The research results turned out to be more than optimistic. In the group of people receiving the drug, hospitalization was necessary only in 7,3%. infected, while in the placebo group 14,1 percent were hospitalized. sick. Molnupiravir also significantly reduced the number of deaths. Among the people who tested the drug, not a single patient died. There were eight deaths in the placebo group.

– When you see 50 percent a decrease in hospitalizations or deaths means that the drug has significant clinical potential, commented Dr. Dean Li of Merck & Co.

The head of the concern, in turn, pointed to the need to accelerate efforts to approve the drug for general use.

– The huge impact of this pandemic requires us to act in unprecedented haste. This is what our teams did by applying to the FDA within 10 days of receiving the results, said Robert Davis in a statement.

The rest of the text is below the video.

How does molnupiravir work? Two tablets a day, but time is important

The regimen for administering molnupiravir is similar to that for antiviral drugs such as the flu. Four pills are taken twice a day for five days, which means a total treatment consists of 40 tablets.

However, a very important issue here is the time from the onset of symptoms of coronavirus infection to the start of treatment. Taking molnupiravir should start as soon as possible. When the company previously studied the effects of the drug on patients hospitalized due to coronavirus infection, the results were not satisfactory. This means that molnupiravir is a drug that is useful in the early stages of the disease. When it is more advanced, the pharmaceutical is no longer able to help the patient significantly.

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Molnupiravir targets the enzyme that the pathogen uses for replication. This means that the process of its multiplication in the body is blocked. This, in turn, gives hope that the drug may also be effective in reducing the effects of infection with new variants of the coronavirus.

The company priced the drug at $ 700. for the full treatment. At the moment, it is said that it will be reimbursed similarly to vaccines against COVID-19.

Other Coronavirus Drugs. What about amantadine or the “Polish drug for COVID-19”?

Currently, molnupiravir is the only oral COVID-19 drug with a chance of approval. Amantadine, ivermectin and the “Polish drug for COVID-19” are also taking part in this “pharmaceutical arms race”. At the moment, however, none of these preparations has undergone tests that would confirm its effectiveness in alleviating the course of the disease caused by the coronavirus.

Remdesivir is also on the list of agents used in patients with COVID-19. However, this drug is only given to people who are already hospitalized as a result of a coronavirus infection.

Do you want to test your COVID-19 immunity after vaccination? Have you been infected and want to check your antibody levels? See the COVID-19 immunity test package, which you will perform at Diagnostics network points.

Also read:

  1. COVID-19 despite vaccination – who is most at risk? A risk calculator was created
  2. New rules for declaring deaths. Changes in the regulations are coming
  3. BioNTech chief: a new COVID-2022 vaccine will be needed in 19
  4. The fourth wave is accelerating, but Poles are not afraid of infection [SONDAŻ]
  5. Norwegians started treating COVID-19 like the flu? There is a reaction from the local authorities

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