Pfizer’s new COVID-19 pill has shown 89% effectiveness in clinical trials, the company said.
A pill drug called Paxlovid from Pfizer reduces the risk of hospitalization and death by 89% among COVID-19 patients if they take the pill within three days of diagnosis.
In the group of patients who participated in the trials, no deaths were recorded in 28 days. Among the subjects who received a placebo, there were 10 such cases over the same period, the study showed. In total, the group of subjects consisted of more than 1200 adults with mild to moderate COVID-19.
Pfizer plans to send the data to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to obtain approval for the drug. If approved by the authorities, the supply of tablets could begin as early as this year, said the company’s chief scientific officer Mikael Dolsten.
In October, the American company Merck announced the development of its own experimental pill for COVID-19. In an interim study, a drug called molnupiravir reduced the risk of hospitalization or death for patients with mild to moderate cases of COVID-19 by about 50%. Earlier, the UK became the first country in the world to approve the use of molnupiravir for patients with COVID-19.
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