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Osagie Ehanire, the Minister of health in Nigeria has confirmed that COIVD-19 patients in Nigeria are receiving remdesivir as treatment.
Remdesevir is an antiretroviral drug developed by Gilead to treat Ebola. It is now been experimented in the treatment of coronavirus given the absence of any known treatment for the disease which has caused 3.1 million infections and 220,000 deaths worldwide.
The need for just one remedy for the virus has seen different suggestions including the use of hydrochloroquine which is now dismissed. Remdesivir is so far the only likely treatment with the most positive preliminary results.
A few reports have dismissed the use of remdesevir in the treatment of coronavirus. However, the US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases reported a different finding after a clinical trial of remdesivir.
According to the report, COVID-19 patients are able to recover faster and are less likely to die when receiving remdesevir.
While it is only a preliminary result of one study, many countries have reported similar results after human trials of remdesivir.
More COVID-19 patients including in Nigeria will also receive remdesivir as treatment. As this happens, it will either cement the use of remdesivir or disqualify it in the treatment of COVID-19.
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