While discussions on the effectiveness, number of doses and age groups of coronavirus vaccines continue, pharmaceutical company Merck shared the new research results about its drug, which is still in the experimental stage. It was noted that it reduced the risk of death and the possibility of intensive care by 50%.
The pill, which is planned to be approved by the American Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as soon as possible, is expected to be submitted to regulatory authorities all over the world. Thanks to the positive results obtained, the Phase-3 trial of the drug ended earlier than planned.
What kind of medicine is the Covid-19 pill Molnupiravir?
Molnupiravir, which is taken orally because it is a pill, reduces its effects by adding errors to the genetic code of the coronavirus, so that the disease can be overcome more mildly. Molnupiravir, which is likened to BioNTech’s vaccine because it disrupts the genetic code of the virus, not the patient, can be put on the market as the first drug option other than Covid-19 vaccines, if it gets approval from the FDA and other regulatory agencies.
What kind of study results did molnupiravir show promise?
According to the details in Reuters, Molnupiravir was tested on a total of 775 patients from all parts of the world. 7.3% of the patients who took the drug during treatment were hospitalized and no deaths were observed. In contrast, 14.1% of the patients in the placebo group, that is, in the comparison group who did not take the drug, were hospitalized and 8 died.
According to this comparison between the two groups, while death was not encountered in patients taking Molnupiravir; Those who took the drug were hospitalized close to 50% less often than those who did not. The drug was given to the patients every 12 hours for 5 days during the tests.
It was said to be “effective against all variants, including Delta”, but its side effects have not yet been clearly explained:
According to the statements of Merck, the company that produces the drug, Molnupiravir is effective against all variants of the coronavirus that have been recorded to date, including Delta. However, the company has not yet made a clear statement about the side effects of the drug. It has been noted that it does not cause any genetic changes in human cells.
Heterosexual intercourse was forbidden to the men participating in the experiment, and being pregnant to women; birth control pill required:
While all male and female patients participating in the trial were advised to use birth control pills during the testing phase of the drug, “heterosexual intercourse” was prohibited for men, and “being pregnant” was prohibited for women of childbearing age.
Price of Covid-19 pill Molnupiravir:
Merck stated that it is ready to produce 10 million doses of Molnupiravir. In addition, according to the agreement with the US government, the price of a package of Molnupiravir, which contains all the doses to be taken every 12 hours for 5 days, was determined as 700 dollars. Merck reported that an agreement has been reached with the US government for 1.7 million packages of drugs.
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