Remdesivir effective against Covid-19 even after short treatment periods

(Bild: Pixabay CC0) Comparable clinical results after five and ten days of treatment - In an international study, scientists from eight countries have investigated the use of the medication Remdesivir in the treatment of Covid-19. One result of the study, which included the participation of the Technical University of Munich's university hospital TUM Klinikum rechts der Isar: The changes in the clinical condition of patients treated for five days were comparable to the changes in patients treated for a period of ten days. The medication Remdesivir is what is referred to as an RNA polymerase inhibitor and was originally tested in treatment of patients suffering from Ebola infections. In recent months several clinical studies have proven the efficacy of the medication against the new Coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. Since Remdesivir had proven effective in previous studies when administered for ten days, the scientists wanted to find out whether a shorter treatment period would also be successful. The results were published in the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM). Researchers investigated the efficacy and safety of the medication in 397 patients with diagnosed serious Covid-19 infections in the international, randomized study.