REMDESIVIR FOR 5 OR 10 DAYS IN PATIENTS WITH SEVERE COVID-19

Deepshikha Verma*, Jhakeshwar Prasad, Purnima Baghel, Shalini Singh, Lalita Sandey, Divya Sahu, Suruj Kaushik, Vandana Dewangan, Kamini Verma and Avinash Kumar Lall

ABSTRACT

Remdesivir is an RNA polymerase inhibitor with potent antiviral activity in vitro and efficacy in animal models of coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19). We conducted a randomized, open-label, phase 3 trial involving hospitalized patients with confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection, oxygen saturation of 94% or less while they were breathing ambient air, and radiologic evidence of pneumonia. Patients were randomly assigned in a 1:1 ratio to receive intravenous remdesivir for either 5 days or 10 days. All patients received 200 mg of remdesivir on day 1 and 100 mg once daily on subsequent days. The primary end point was clinical status on day 14, assessed on a 7-point ordinal scale. In patients with severe Covid-19 not requiring mechanical ventilation, our trial did not show a significant difference between a 5-day course and a 10-day course of remdesivir. With no placebo control, however, the magnitude of benefit cannot be determined.

Keywords: Coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19); Remdesivir; Patients monitoring.