Drug proves effective against virus as economic damage rises
Source: AP
By MARTIN CRUTSINGER, MARILYNN MARCHIONE and PAT EATON-ROBB
Scientists on Wednesday announced the first effective treatment against the coronavirus an experimental drug that can speed the recovery of COVID-19 patients in a major medical advance that came as the economic gloom caused by the scourge deepened in the U.S. and Europe.
The U.S. government said it is working to make the antiviral medication remdesivir available to patients as quickly as possible.
What it has proven is that a drug can block this virus, said Dr. Anthony Fauci, the governments top infectious-disease expert. This will be the standard of care.
Stocks surged around the world on the news, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average gaining more than 530 points on the day, or over 2%.
Read more: https://apnews.com/923e7fe01b35888ff5562ca577a26aa4
msongs
(69,451 posts)The Magistrate
(96,043 posts)It reduced time in hospital by about a third in patients who received it. This is certainly medically effective, but it isn't something that fixes you right up, which I suspect will be the meaning many take from 'proven effective'. The most important thing is that the trial has shown a drug can have effect, and figuring why and how it does will surely point the way to more effective compounds.
DrToast
(6,414 posts)You seem to be ascribing some belief of many people (many are saying) without providing any evidence.
Oh I dont think that, but many are saying that!
The drug is effective at treating COVID-19. Not a single thing about that is wrong or misleading.
The Magistrate
(96,043 posts)You might take no meaning from something being referred to as being like 'a knight's fork', or a 'bishop's move', though a quite clear meaning would be conveyed to a person who plays the game. Medicine, like law, and most skilled endeavors, has a number of terms which may appear to be commonplace words but are not, and mean something different to a practitioner discussing the vocation than they do to a layman.
A drug which reduces time of infection by about a third, and rate of death by a similar proportion, is certainly effective, in medical terms, and far better than no treatment. But it remains the case that many hearing something is effective against an illness will be thinking more along the lines of what a course of antibiotics will do for most instances of pneumonia, and picture something which will reverse the course of the malady, and can be relied on to restore health in fairly short order.
When it is fully understood why and how this drug works against this virus, it seems to me likely that ways to improve its action, and attack the virus with greater effect, will be found. Getting something that works at all is a profound advance, and points the way to better agents.
DrToast
(6,414 posts)Yes, not everyone as BRILLIANT as you, huh? Those common pleebs can't be expected to understand what a "treatment" is.
Good lord.
The Magistrate
(96,043 posts)Irish whiskey always made me want to fight somebody, but rum settles and soothes....
DrToast
(6,414 posts)cstanleytech
(26,805 posts)the virus but has a 80% chance of causing liver or brain cancer is not exactly something to start celebrating over.
Native
(6,096 posts)cstanleytech
(26,805 posts)I am reading it correctly before it can be certified as part of a treatment regime assuming of course it passes all the trials.
Massacure
(7,556 posts)From an article linked to from the article posted in the OP, there are two notable quotes:
Fauci revealed the results while speaking from the White House. Remdesivir was being evaluated in at least seven major studies, but this one, led by the NIH, was the strictest test. Independent monitors notified study leaders just days ago that the drug was working, so it was no longer ethical to continue with a placebo group
Gilead said it was ramping up production and aims to have more than 140,000 treatment courses by the end of May, more than 500,000 by October and more than 1 million by December.
https://apnews.com/b894f3b39f6915dcc3cc402438deaf0b
It looks like Gilead is ramping up production and anticpates being able to produce enough remdesivir to treat 150,000 people a month. About 30,000 people are being infected per day in the US, so that is only enough to treat one sixth of the cases.
DrToast
(6,414 posts)This will be used for hospitalizations.
LisaL
(46,140 posts)I don't think it makes sense to wait until a person is so sick they need to be hospitalized.
DrToast
(6,414 posts)It's definitely a bit of a dilemma that it workers better the earlier you give it, but you only want to save it for the most severe cases.
I'm glad I don't have to decide that.
LisaL
(46,140 posts)should get it early on, since they are in most severe risk of dying.
DrToast
(6,414 posts)I was just taking issue with the original post that there's not enough for every case. There doesn't need to be for it to be very helpful.
DeminPennswoods
(15,866 posts)remdesivir must be pretty effective.
The Salk polio vaccine was sent immediately into production and given to kids once it was shown to be effective. There is definitely precedent.
If there is an effective treatment, then life can go back to normal because if a person contracts the virus, there's an effective treatment available meaning less overall fear and anxiety along with the need for mitigation efforts.
cstanleytech
(26,805 posts)are aware of the public wanting to see some progress being made so they are willing to throw caution to the wind.
DeminPennswoods
(15,866 posts)The gold standard of drug studies and it's being run by career pros at NIH. Fauci has danced around Trump's lies at times, but there is no reason to think he would not be speaking truthfully about the ongoing drug study.
DrToast
(6,414 posts)...it's common to end the placebo portion of the study.
If we weren't talking about life threatening conditions, then you could justify continuing the double blind study.
yaesu
(8,034 posts)Grokenstein
(5,788 posts)Don't everyone raise your hand at once, now.
Steelrolled
(2,022 posts)I imagine I would seriously consider it if admitted to hospital.
Aussie105
(5,995 posts)Having had H1N1 swine flu, and recovered quickly with a batch of tamiflu.
No side effects.
The 'lab rat' part of the study on remdesivir is over.
LisaL
(46,140 posts)You think people would turn it down?
The problem is going to be, not having enough of the drug, not people turning it down.
noneof_theabove
(410 posts)Bleach and Lysol have a 100% efficacy within hours and as low as minutes.
One minor draw back though, it kills the host but hey it works.
[/sarcasm]
Maxheader
(4,393 posts)The yellow haired traitor will claim it was its idea..Maybe want its picture or initials on the
syringe...or pills...
progree
(11,449 posts)(actually cases per 100,000)
https://apnews.com/923e7fe01b35888ff5562ca577a26aa4
And zoomable. And one can hover the mouse over any county and it and it will pop up statistics for that county including deaths per 100,000 as well raw number of cases and raw number of deaths.
It says the source is John Hopkins University, but the only one I can find for JHU is this:
https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/us-map
which doesn't show the state boundaries and (b) it's total cases per county, not cases per capita by county.
truthisfreedom
(23,290 posts)He must be facing unbearable pressure from the administration. This doesnt seem like him.
DrToast
(6,414 posts)rocktivity
(44,749 posts)by getting as many infected as people possible off the streets.
rocktivity
larwdem
(814 posts)This is like A fucking band aid
Aussie105
(5,995 posts)Your choice.
Aussie105
(5,995 posts)then it certainly is effective.
But it doesn't prevent you from catching the virus, it just speeds up recovery.
Best thing available for treatment, certainly better than Trump's laughable suggestions, until a vaccine is available.
Crank up the remdesivir machinery, we are going to need mountains of it!
Danascot
(4,828 posts)DeminPennswoods
(15,866 posts)probably for fear people would run out, buy pepsid and swallow it by the fistfuls.
LisaL
(46,140 posts)DeminPennswoods
(15,866 posts)nt