First Life-Saving Drug for COVID-19 Found

Experts in the UK say the successful treatment with the low-dose steroid drug dexamethasone is a "tremendous breakthrough" in the fight against this deadly virus.

The drug is part of a larger global treatment trial to see if any of the popular drugs are effective against the corona virus.

The use of this drug in the trial reduced the mortality rate by one-third in patients who were on ventilators and by about 20% in patients who were on oxygen.

Researchers say that if the drug had been given to patients as soon as the epidemic broke out in the UK, about 5,000 lives could have been saved.

In addition, poor countries with a large number of COVID-19 patients can benefit greatly.

Research Results

About 19 out of 20 people infected with the corona virus recovered without going to the hospital. And most of those hospitalized also recovered, although some needed oxygen or artificial respiration. These are patients who were in critical condition but benefited from the use of Dexamethasone. 

During the trial, which was supervised by a team from the University of Oxford, 2,000 patients were admitted to the hospital with dexamethasone and then compared to 4,000 patients who had not been given the drug.Patients on ventilators had a 40 to 25 percent reduced risk of death. Patients who needed oxygen had a 25 to 20 percent reduction in risk of death.

This drug is already prescribed to reduce inflammation in many disorders, and it seems to reduce the damage to the body's overactive immune system after being infected with the corona virus and to eliminate the virus.The body's excessive response is called cytokine and can be fatal.

Head of the researchers Professor Peter Horby said, "So far, this is the only drug that has reduced the death rate significantly". This is a great development. "

Another researcher, Professor Martin Landrey, says that one in eight patients who need artificial respiration can survive with the drug.Similarly, at least one out of every 20 to 25 patients on oxygen can be saved.

Cost of the Treatment

 Professor Martin Landrey says that the benefits are obvious and dexamethasone treatment for 10 days costs five pounds (approximately 6 dollars) per patient. That means 35 pounds to save lives and the drug is available worldwide.

Who can Use it?

Professor Landrey says the drug can be given to patients in hospitals if appropriate, but people should not take it on their own at home.

Dexamethasone is not beneficial for people who do not have severe symptoms of corona virus and do not have difficulty breathing.

The trial, called the Recovery Trial, has been going on since March. The trial also included the malaria drug hydroxychloroquine, which was later discontinued due to concerns that it could increase the risk of heart disease and death.

Remdesivir,another Antiviral Drug

Another antiviral drug, Remdesivir, which is helpful in early recovery from the corona virus, is already available for treatment at the UK's National Health Service or NHS.

According to the experts dexamethasone has been used for a variety of diseases since the 1960's, including asthma and joint pain. More than half of all patients with COVID-19 who need a ventilator die, so a one-third reduction in the death rate is a significant achievement.

How The Drug is Given?

The drug is given intravenously to critically ill people, while it is given in pill form to patients with mild symptoms.

The most important thing is that this steroid is not very expensive or rare and its use can benefit many sick people all over the world immediately.

So far, Remdesivir, a drug designed to treat the Ebola virus, has only been effective against corona virus.The drug has been shown to reduce the incidence of COVID-19 symptoms from 15 to 11 days, but there is no evidence that the drug has reduced the number of deaths.

While dexamethasone has been available for many years, remdesivir is a relatively new drug that is in short supply and has not yet been priced.