Merck to seek authorisation for oral Covid-19 drug

Merck to seek authorisation for oral Covid-19 drug

Merck to seek authorisation for oral Covid-19 drug
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Pharmaceutical company Merck said Friday it will seek authorisation in the US for an oral drug for Covid-19, after the pill showed “compelling results” in a clinical trial.

The experimental drug, molnupiravir, significantly reduced the risk of hospitalisation or death when administered to high-risk patients early in the disease, Merck and its partner Ridgeback Biotherapeutics said in a statement.

“At the interim analysis, 7.3 percent of patients who received molnupiravir were hospitalised through Day 29, compared with 14.1 percent of placebo-treated patients who were hospitalised or died.”

The phase three clinical trial evaluated data from 775 patients with laboratory-confirmed mild to moderate Covid.

“Merck plans to seek emergency use authorisation in the US as soon as possible and to submit applications to regulatory agencies worldwide,” the companies said.

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Molnupiravir, one of the several oral pills for Covid-19 being developed, is meant to stop the virus from replicating.

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