NEW YORK (WBAP/KLIF News) – As pharmaceutical companies race to develop treatments to battle COVID-19 and its mutations, Pfizer confirmed Tuesday its experimental pill is effective against the omicron variant.
The company released the results of a 2,246-person study that the oral antiviral reduced hospitalizations and deaths by almost 89% among high-risk adults when taken shortly after COVID-19 symptoms emerged.
The study also showed Pfizer’s drug Paxlovid held its potency against the omicron variant.
Researchers tested the pill against a man-made version of a key protein that omicron uses to duplicate.
“This news provides further corroboration that our oral antiviral candidate, if authorized or approved, could have meaningful impact on the lives of many, as the data further support the efficacy of Paxlovid in reducing hospitalization and death and show a substantial decrease in viral load. This underscores the treatment candidate’s potential to save lives of patients around the world,” said Albert Bourla, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Pfizer.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is expected to issue a ruling on whether to grant emergency use authorization of Paxlovid and a similar drug from Merck.
Merck claims its pill reduces hospitalizations and deaths by 30% in high-risk adults.
If approved, the treatments would be the first of their kind that American consumers can pick up at their local pharmacy.
The news of an oral pill that could be available in the marketplace soon comes as COVID-19 metrics rise in some states due to the Delta variant and the U.S. approaches almost 800,000 pandemic deaths.
Click here to read Pfizer’s full report about the Paxlovid study.
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