Officials in China announced Monday that they have approved the antiviral favilavir for use in the treatment of the novel coronavirus COVID-19.
The approval by the National Medical Products Administration was based on the drug’s efficacy against the virus in clinical trials started in response to the ongoing outbreak, which has sickened more than 70,000 people globally.
Specific results of the clinical trial involving favilavir, formerly known as fapilavir, have not been released. The drug was tested in 70 patients with confirmed COVID-19 infection in the city of Shenzhen.
The company has begun producing the drug in large quantities to meet the demand created by the outbreak, though it is not the only one being investigated for use against COVID-19.
Another drug option, remdesivir, is being developed by U.S. drugmaker Gilead. Originally intended to treat Ebola virus, remdesivir has reportedly been used to treat one American sickened with COVID-19, and the patient in question has recovered fully.
Meanwhile, doctors in South Korea have reported that they have used the HIV combination drug lopinavir plus ritonavir — marketed as Kaletra — to successfully treat COVID-19 in a 54-year-old patient.
The theory is that those who have recovered from viral infections have antibodies against the disease in their blood, and that those antibodies can be passed on to others who have been infected via transfusion, providing their immune system with a needed “boost”. However, the key to its effectiveness is timing — transfusions need to be performed early enough in the course of the disease for the antibodies to work. (Agencies)