Questioning the EUA for remdesivir

The FDA announced late Friday that it had expanded the emergency use authorization for Gilead Sciences' remdesivir to treat Covid-19 — allowing it to be used, now, in patients who have been hospitalized with the virus, but do not require oxygen supplementation. 

A JAMA paper last week pointed out that patients with moderate Covid-19 given a five-day course of the antiviral had a “statistically significantly better clinical status” compared to those receiving standard care at 11 days after treatment. However, “the difference was of uncertain clinical importance,” the study concluded. 

An accompanying JAMA editorial said that several questions remain regarding the efficacy of remdesivir. It points out that we still don’t know what the optimal patient population is for receiving the drug — nor do we know the optimal duration for therapy. And it’s still unknown how much of an additional benefit remdesivir can provide over corticosteroids, which are widely available and far less expensive.