EU agency recommends 1st COVID-19 treatment

By Agnes Szucs

BRUSSELS (AA) - The EU’s drug agency on Thursday recommended the conditional authorization to the US-developed remdesivir drug as a treatment for the novel coronavirus.

This is the first drug that the European Medicine Agency recommended to be marketed as a cure against COVID-19.

Remdesivir was originally developed to fight Ebola, and tests have shown that it significantly reduces the recovery time of coronavirus patients, especially in the case of severe illnesses.

A study proved that patients in serious condition healed in an average of 12 days with the help of remdesivir compared to the 18-day results of the control group treated with placebo.

The European Commission needs to give the final green light for marketing the drug in the EU.

The drug could be used in the treatment of adults and children over the age of 12 who require supplemental oxygen because of pneumonia.