D'EU ëmfaasst dem Merck seng nei Lagevrito Pille wéi COVID-19 Fäll eropgoen

On Friday, the European Union drug regulator issued an ‘advice’ supporting the emergency use of the new anti-coronavirus drug developed by American multinational pharmaceutical company Merck in collaboration with Ridgeback Biotherapeutics, although it has not yet been authorized by US authorities.

d' Europäesch Medizin Agentur (EMA) has recommended the emergency use of Merck’s pill for the treatment for clinically vulnerable COVID-19 patients as new coronavirus cases spike across the European continent.

An enger Erklärung, Iwert said the drug called Lagevrio – also known as molnupiravir or MK 4482 – “can be used to treat adults with COVID-19 who do not require supplemental oxygen and who are at increased risk of developing severe COVID-19.”

EU regulator said the treatment should be administered as soon as possible after COVID-19 is diagnosed and within five days of the start of symptoms. The medicine should be taken twice a day for a period of five days.

d' Iwert listed the potential side effects of the pill, including mild or moderate diarrhea, nausea, dizziness and headache. The treatment is not recommended for pregnant women.

The regulator announced earlier on Friday that it had begun reviewing Pfizer’s medicine Paxlovid for COVID-19 with the same goal “to support national authorities” who may decide on its early use prior to marketing authorization in light of rising cases and deaths in Europe.

Today, Austria announced it would enter a new nationwide lockdown from Monday and make vaccination mandatory, while Germany’s health authorities claimed the country had turned into “one big outbreak.”

Both Pfizer and Merck have requested approval for their coronavirus medicines from the US Food and Drug Administration, but it is unclear when it might be granted.