Health Canada has officially announced that it has approved the distribution of remdesivir, a drug that helps in treating COVID-19 patients with severe symptoms.
While talking about drug, Infectious Disease expert, Dr. Lisa Barrett of Dalhousie University, Halifax said the drug “has also been granted emergency or conditional authorization in the United States, Europe, Japan, Singapore and Australia.”
He said: “This is a medication that works to inhibit the virus itself; many of the other therapeutics we’ve seen used or attempted for use in the treatment of COVID related disease have been around the immune system. However, this one is designed to directly inhibit the virus itself, and has been used or tested for use in other viral infections previously.”
As such, Canadians from 12 years with severe symptoms like pneumonia and weigh at least 40 kilograms (approximately 88 pounds) can take remdesivir.
Health Canada has “completed an expedited six-week review of remdesivir and determined that the drug’s benefits outweigh its risks when used against symptoms of COVID-19.”
Also, Health Canada stated that the drug will only be used in healthcare facilities and can only be given through IV.
Currently, its supply is limited but the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) is working on getting more stock from the drug company.
