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ARCHIVED - Antiviral pills poised to join the Covid battle in Spain
How the medication works and what side effects it could present
The President of the Spanish Government, Pedro Sanchez, announced on Monday January 10 that he has ordered 344,000 oral antivirals manufactured by pharmaceutical giant Pfizer, and this new medication promises to drastically reduce the chances of hospitalisation and death.
The pills, called Paxlovid, have been recommended by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) for adults at increased risk and have shown encouraging results in trials when taken in the days immediately after a Covid diagnosis or the onset of the first symptoms.
While still awaiting formal approval, Pfizer’s data revealed that the pills reduce the risk of hospitalisation or death in 89% of cases, in addition to being a powerful inhibitor against the Omicron variant.
For now, the EMA has endorsed its “emergency use” under the strict supervision of a doctor, as when taken with certain other medications Paxlovid can cause harmful increases in blood pressure. It is also not recommended for patients with severe kidney or liver failure or for women who are pregnant or plan to become pregnant.
The medication contains two active substances – PF-07321332 and ritonavir – which are available in separate tablets designed to be taken together twice a day for five days. In the general population, studies have shown that the drug can produce mild side effects such as dysgeusia (a taste disorder), diarrhoea and vomiting.
While experts believe antivirals will soon become the second defence against Covid after vaccinations, certain monoclonal antibody treatments are currently being examined in Spain by the National Centre for Biotechnology (CSIS). These antibodies have been shown to prevent very serious symptoms of coronavirus in patients who have already contracted the disease.
According to the CSIS, these serums are being considered primarily for patients with obesity, diabetes and the elderly, and could be especially useful for immunosupressed people who do not have the ability to generate their own antibodies to fight off the infection.
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