New Covid Drug That Cuts Risk Of Death By Almost 80% Approved In The UK

UK regulators have approved a new COVID-19 drug that will reduce the risk of hospitalisation and death by nearly 80%

UK regulators have approved a new COVID-19 drug that will reduce the risk of hospitalisation and death by nearly 80%.

Developed by pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) and Vir Biotechnology, the monoclonal antibody Xevudy (sotrovimab) has now been given approval in the UK for those with a higher risk of developing severe Covid-19, as announced by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA).

Sotrovimab – which is administered through intravenous infusion over the course of half an hour – is now authorised for the treatment of those with mild to moderate infections as well as at least one risk factor for becoming severely ill, including obesity, older age (>60 years), diabetes mellitus and heart disease.

In a clinical trial, a single dose of sotrovimab – which was most effective during the early stages of infection – cut the risk of hospitalisation and death by 79% among high-risk adults who’d contracted symptomatic COVID-19 infection.

It’s understood that the government and the NHS will give confirmation as to how this treatment will be deployed in due course.

It’s unknown how effective the treatment will be against the new Covid-19 variant, Omicron.