COVID-19 Medicines: At a Glance

COVID-19 cases are surging again in India. Most individuals with COVID are experiencing a mild illness, and they are able to take care of themselves at home. But some, mainly those with underlying health complications can not take care of themselves at home and could benefit from one of several COVID-19 medicines.

These medicines either are available in the form of pills or are given intravenously (IV) or by injection. All these medicines can be taken only after being prescribed by a health specialist.

It`s absolutely crucial to keep in mind that while these new medicines are promising in scaling down the severity of COVID-19 and helping COVID-19-infected patients in order to prevent hospital stays and death, these medicines are not a substitute for vaccination, which remains the one and only effective way to prevent severe COVID-19.

Below are some effective and authorized COVID-19 medications, that can be the best option in order to treat patients with this disease:

Paxlovid (nirmatrelvir and ritonavir):

Paxlovid is the brand name for an oral antiviral pill that combines a couple of generic medicines named nirmatrelvir and ritonavir. This medicine was the first CORONAVIRUS antiviral pill to receive the FDA EUA (emergency use authorization). Paxlovid is intended for use in all those who have an ongoing COVID-19 infection.

Individuals age 12 and older who weigh at least 88 lb, with positive COVID-19 test results, have signs and symptoms and are prone to developing serious Coronavirus symptoms. Nirmatrelvir Ritonavir tablet was approved in December 2021.

Remdesivir:

Remdesivir is an antiviral medicine, supplied under several brands including Veklury. The medicine was the first COVID-19 treatment to get full approval from the FDA. Although primarily used to treat COVID patients only once they were hospitalized, new findings suggest that this medication can be useful in outpatients who got the infection and are at higher risk for serious disease.

Remdesivir is given as an IV injection and administered only in a healthcare setting by a health specialist. For outpatient, this treatment is a 3-day course of infusions that needs to be started within 7 days of symptoms onset. Full approval of Remdesivir was granted in October 2020.

Molnupiravir:

Molnupiravir is supplied under the brand name Lagevrio. Developed by companies Merk and Ridgeback Biotherapeutics, this medicine was heralded as a significant game-changer when their clinical trial result was announced in 2021. But when the findings were finalized, it demonstrated the medicine to have less efficacy than earlier reported.

The CDC now recommends that this medicinal product (Molnupiravir) should be prescribed when the above-mentioned medicines are not available.

Individuals ages 18 and older who are at higher risk for hospitalization and death from CORONAVIRUS can use this medicine.

The recommended dosage is 4 capsules every 2 hours for 5 days. Dosage should be taken as quickly as possible, within 5 days of symptoms onset.

Evusheld (at present not authorized):

Evusheld mainly combines two medicines, tixagevimab, and cilgavimab. Formulated as a monoclonal antibody, this medicinal product was granted FDA authorization in the month of December 2021: but, this Evusheld authorization was stopped in the month January 2023 until afore intimation.

The agency FDA is limiting the use of the treatment to junctures when the strains Evusheld is able to protect against makeup ≤ 90% of infections. As per recent findings, this medicine is unlikely to be useful against newer strains named SARS-CoV-2 (including XXB.1.5) that, combined, account for beyond 90% of infections.

Evusheld was not developed for SARS-CoV-2; rather, for keeping immunocompromised individuals and those who did not respond to vaccination from getting sick. This medication was the first long-acting antibody to grab an emergency use authorization for pre-exposure prevention of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2).

Bebtelovimab (at present not authorized):

Designed as a monoclonal antibody, the FDA authorization of Bebtelovimab was paused in November 2022. This medicine showed efficacy against early Omicron strains, but it proved to be not useful against BQ.1 and BQ.1.1 Omicron sublineages.

Bebtelovimab was the crucial medicine for certain immunocompromised patients with COVID who are not able to go with Paxlovid or faced complications with other medicines.

Where to Buy COVID-19 Medicines:

For accessing all COVID-19 medications, a trusted name IKRIS Pharma Network (IPN) can help Patients, Physicians, and Hospitals legitimately. For us, our patients’s health is foremost. At IPN, it’s our top-tier endeavor to help accelerate access to new medicines for COVID-19 treatment in India and all the other locations across the world. We hold GDP certification that specifically demonstrates our commitment to quality.

We can be contacted either via our TOLL-FREE: 1800-889-1064 or Call/WhatsApp: +91 8130290915, if anyone wants to buy COVID-19 medicines. We are a step ahead when it comes to making lives better.

Reference:

https://www.fda.gov/drugs/drug-safety-and-availability/fda-announces-evusheld-not-currently-authorized-emergency-use-us

https://www.fda.gov/drugs/drug-safety-and-availability/fda-announces-bebtelovimab-not-currently-authorized-any-us-region