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The work of big pharmaceuticals throughout the Covid pandemic has not only focused on creating effective vaccines against this virus and its variants, but also on finding the right medicine to treat patients who have contracted the disease and who for various reasons could develop complications that could become fatal.
Pfizer is one of the laboratories that for months has been working on the development of an effective drug capable of controlling the infection caused by contracting Covid – 19, thus developing the Paxlovid pill, which according to various studies carried out in previous months, showed a reduction of 89% in hospitalization of patients who were treated with said drug within 3 days later res to the development of symptoms, compared to patients who received other treatments. Furthermore, none of the patients treated with the drug died.
Also, Pfizer stated that in recent studies it was found that its pill is also highly effective in patients infected with the Omicron variant .
Given the current situation due to the variant Ómicron, which has again accelerated the growth in the number of infections and thinking of avoiding a possible collapse in services doctors, this Wednesday, the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA, for its acronym in English) announced its authorization of the use of Pfizer anti-Covid pills in coronavirus patients .
The FDA indicated that the pill from Pfizer (Paxlovid) should be supplied to Covid patients in excess 12 years who are vulnerable to becoming seriously ill because of their age or because they have some medical conditions, such as obesity or diabetes. He also clarified that both vaccinated and unvaccinated may be eligible to be treated with this drug in case of infection with the virus.
Similarly, The FDA clarified that the decision was made thinking that there are patients who can be treated at home, without having to go to the hospital, which will lower the burden of care at a time when a significant increase in the number of positive cases is expected .
Paxlovid treatment consists of taking 30 pills for 5 days, accompanied by another medicine called ritonavir, which usually used in patients with HIV and helps the Pfizer medicine stay active in the body longer.
The U.S. Government ordered 10 million full treatments of the Pfizer pill , which will cost approximately $ 530 dollars per patient. The pharmaceutical company also indicated that in these first days, the supply will be somewhat limited since they will only be able to distribute treatments for around 65, 000 patients; but they are expected to deliver some 200, in January and others 150, 000 in February 2022.
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