The United Kingdom government has granted the approval of dexamethasone, a corticosteroid medication, for the treatment of COVID-19, the infection caused by the novel coronavirus.
Officials found that dexamethasone reduced the risk of COVID-19 deaths among patients who are hospitalized and require oxygen or mechanical ventilation.
The approval came hours after a study, funded by the government, proved that dexamethasone reduced the risk of death by 20 percent in COVID-19 patients who were on oxygen supply and 35 percent who were on ventilators.
The study also found that the steroid drug reduced 28-day mortality by 17 percent in the large study.
This study was the first trial to show that a drug can significantly reduce the risk of COVID-19 deaths.
In the United States, a study demonstrated that an antiviral drug remdesivir, which is developed by Gilead Sciences, reduced the recovery time; however, the study has not yet proven that the drug helps patients to survive the disease.
Also, other studies have not worked out that well. Recently, the FDA revoked its Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) for malarial drugs chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine after research found that the drugs raised cardiovascular concerns.
Considering the findings of remdesivir studies, the FDA issued the EUA for the antiviral treatment. Experts are now considering whether to recommend remdesivir, according to Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID).
Even before the dexamethasone results, the UK officials had been buying additional stocks of the drug. The government can now treat nearly 200,000 patients from its stockpile.
Prof. Jonathan Van-Tam, deputy chief medical officer of NHS England, said in a statement, “The dexamethasone results – plus disappointing data for hydroxychloroquine – illustrate the power of properly conducted clinical trials and the inherent danger of assuming things work without robust data.”
Meanwhile, researchers are moving ahead with their COVID-19 research in an effort to develop vaccines and treatments. The pharmacological industry is conducting trials on more than 200 products. Studies are underway on over 130 vaccines. Globally, the virus has affected more than 8.2 million people and killed over 446,000 people so far. In the United States, officials have reported more than 2.2 million cases, with over 119,000 deaths so far.
