WHERE: New recommendations for Merck's antiviral drug molnupiravir for Covid: who should take it

The International Expert Committee of the World Health Organization (WHO) supports the use of Merck’s antiviral drug molnupiravir.

In patients who do not have severe Covid-19, but are at higher risk of needing hospitalization, reports the WHO. This category is considered to include especially the unvaccinated, the elderly, and those with a weakened immune system or chronic diseases.

What the WHO committee says

The WHO committee notes that young and healthy coronavirus patients, children, pregnant and lactating women should not take the drug due to possible side effects. Molnupiravir prevents the coronavirus from multiplying and spreading throughout the body. Used early, as soon as possible after the initial infection, it helps prevent the onset of more severe symptoms of Covid-19.

The new WHO recommendation

The new WHO recommendation, published in the British medical journal BMJ, is based on new data from six randomized controlled clinical trials involving a total of 4,796 patients. These show that molnupiravir reduces the risk of hospitalization (43 fewer hospital admissions per 1,000 high-risk patients) and time to resolution of symptoms (3.4 fewer days of illness on average), and there is a slight reduction in mortality. (six fewer deaths per 1,000 patients).

The recommendation does not apply to patients with severe or critical Covid-19, as there is no data from clinical trials in this group. The WHO experts also point to problems with the cost and availability of molnupiravir.

In the same recommendation, the panel of experts also recommends a treatment that combines two monoclonal antibodies (casirivimab and imdevimab) but only in patients who are not infected with the Omicron variant of the coronavirus, since this “cocktail” is not effective against the latter. . .

The Committee also notes that it continues to recommend the use of baricitinib, corticosteroids, and interleukin-6 inhibitors in patients with severe COVID-19, as well as the use of the monoclonal antibody sotrovimab in patients with relatively mild COVID-19. blood plasma, ivermectin and hydroxychloroquine in patients with Covid-19, regardless of the severity of the disease.

source: iefi merida