Young COVID patients to be treated with Remdesivir – Health Minister

With Remdesivir having been granted approval for treatment of young children infected with COVID, the Health Ministry said it intends to follow protocols in administering the drug to those patients who require the medication.
This week, the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the antiviral Veklury (Remdesivir) as the first COVID-19 treatment for young children. The FDA has said, “Veklury is not a substitute for vaccination in individuals for whom COVID-19 vaccination and booster doses are recommended. The FDA has approved two vaccines, and three vaccines are available for emergency use, to prevent COVID-19 and the serious clinical outcomes associated with COVID-19, including hospitalisation and death.
The FDA urges the public to get vaccinated, and receive a booster when eligible.”
Previously, the medication was only given emergency use authorisation by the FDA. With this approval, healthcare professionals treating children under 12 who are at high risk for severe COVID can readily prescribe the drug.
Remdesivir had already been approved to treat persons over the age of 12.
Health Minister Dr Frank Anthony shared that it has been challenging to treat children with COVID, noting that the drug has been useful for adults.
“We would have seen that, throughout this pandemic, it was difficult for us to be able to treat children. Although generally children do have a milder form of the illness, there are cases sometimes when they do present with severe illnesses. It has been challenging in managing those patients.”
The Health Minister added, “In terms of the treatment with COVID, we have been using Remdesivir for some time now in the adult population. That has worked well…This is a good development, and we look forward to seeing how and when if we have these severe cases amongst children, we will follow the protocols that have been established to be able to treat them using Remdesivir.”
Molnupiravir is also accessible locally for COVID-19 treatment. The Government has been in communication with Pfizer to procure Paxlovid.
“Paxlovid is another medication made by Pfizer, but it’s more specific for the treatment of COVID-19 patients. This, too, has been quite effective,” the Minister outlined.
In March, Molnupiravir was approved for use in the treatment of COVID-19 cases in Guyana, targeting mainly patients with moderate symptoms, to prevent the development of severe disease. Produced by Merck and Ridgeback Biotherapeutics, oral medication has proven to significantly reduce both hospitalisations and deaths.