DCGI approves emergency use of Zydus drug Virafin for Covid treatment
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New Delhi, April 23: Giving boost COVID-19 treatment in India amid when the second wave of COVID is hitting hard the country, Drug Controller General of India (DCGI) gave an emergency nod to Zudus Cadila's anti-viral drug 'Virafin' for treatment of moderate COVID-19 infection.
According to the news agency, a single dose of the antiviral drug has an effect on 91.15 percent of patients. They were shown to be COVID-19 negative within seven days. It reduces hours of supplemental oxygen in the patients.
This is a positive sign of the medicine as it is able to control respiratory distress which has been one of the major challenges in treating Covid. It is good news for Indians as the country is currently in a shortage of Oxygen.
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The pharma company a Pegylated Interferon alpha-2b drug, Virafin, is to be administered in a single dose subcutaneous (under the skin) regimen. The drug will help patients recover faster and avoid many complications. It will be available on the prescription of a medical specialist for use in hospital/institutional setups.
In the multicentric trial conducted in 20-25 centers across India, Virafin showed a lesser need for supplemental oxygen, indicating that it was able to control respiratory distress and failure, which has been one of the major challenges in treating Covid-19.
Citing Phase-III clinical trial data company said, the report suggests that at least 91 percent of patients treated with the Hepatitis C drug tested negative for coronavirus in standard RT-PCR tests on the seventh day, compared to nearly 79 percent who were given the standard care. The drug is known as Pegylated Interferon alpha-2b and branded as 'PegiHep' by Cadila, was initially approved for liver ailments.
Zydus Cadila's COVID-19 vaccine ZyCoV-D is in the row to take DCGI's nod by May after submitting adequate data to DCGI. The vaccine currently is in Phase-3 III clinical trials.
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