COVID-19: Gilead's Remdesivir Drug has a temporary job till we wait for the actual vaccine

In recent news, we found hope with Gilead's Remdesivir drug to treat Coronavirus. Dr Anthony Fauci is the head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases confirmed this news. He is conducting the study on Remdsisvir. He recently said that the trial showed a significant positive effect in treating the virus. Where Placebo takes around 15 days to help a patient, this drug only takes 11.

Fauci also said:

The data shows that remdesivir has a clear-cut, significant, positive effect in diminishing the time to recovery.

The company that manufacturers the drug, Gilead issued a news release saying it had become aware of results from the NIAID trial. This trial showed that the drug helped patients recover more quickly than standard care. It suggested that it may become the first effective treatment for an illness that has turned modern life inside-out. The company initially created this drug for the treatment of Ebola. But it didn't prove effective there. Instead, it is helping the sickest of sick.

But how much is Remdesivir effective?

Worldwide, about 1,090 people participated in the study, Fauci said. He even called it the first randomized placebo-controlled trial. The study also showed that 8% of patients who took Remdesivir, died compared to 11% of patients who received the Placebo. However, there were not enough deaths to make those numbers appear significant.

The study even said that the hospitals discharged most people by the end of Day 14.

How does it work?

To simply state, Remdesivir copies the RNA and develops immunity. It just develops building blocks that help us to fight the virus. The drug quietly goes into the virus and stops its replication process.

Gilead's chief medical officer Merdad Parsey told Yahoo that patients who had symptoms for less time seemed to respond better to the medicine. But there also appeared to be some benefit for those who were more critical. It was because the virus triggers an abnormal immune reaction called cytokine storm which is responsible for lung injury.

Parsey said:

By limiting the viral replication, you're going to limit the inflammation, you're going to reduce the number of people who develop lung injury, and you're going to get them off the ventilator faster.

Is it a miracle cure?

It is a treatment, that has the potential to cure us in less time than other medicines. But it is still modest in its use. Many pharmaceutical companies are working on the vaccine, that will prevent the virus, but Remdesivir can't do that.

We only can wait for Research and Development to do a miracle.

Will it be available in India?

Gilead's CEO said that since it has proved to benefit, they will be mass-producing it for the world. But how long will it take to come to India? No authorities have made press releases in that regard.