Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin has announced that 173 COVID-19 patients have recovered fully as of May 9 after being administered Pfizer’s antiviral Paxlovid pills. “No side effects have been recorded by the patients either,” Khairy said.

The patients had received the pills in mid-April.

A total of 48,000 boxes of Pfizer’s Paxlovid pills for COVID-19 patients were delivered to Pharmaniaga Logistics Sdn. Bhd. on April 11 – the medication has since been supplied to 512 COVID-19 assessment centres (CACs) and 78 government hospitals.

The pills are recommended for Covid-19 patients aged 18 and above, who are not in the high-risk category and do not require oxygen therapy; and should be taken within five days of symptoms to reduce the risk of developing severe complications.

Paxlovid is not authorised for use for longer than five consecutive days.

“The priority for Paxlovid treatment is for high-risk COVID-19 patients who are experiencing light to mild symptoms,” Khairy said. He assured that the ministry is committed to improving the public’s access to medicines to treat and prevent COVID-19 transmission in Malaysia.

“We will ensure that any medication is properly assessed based on quality, safety and effectiveness.”

Khairy also added that those above 60 could opt to receive their second booster shot between four and six months after receiving the first booster. The same applied to those between 18 and 59 who are at high risk of infection.

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The World Health Organization (WHO) has backed the use of Pfizer Inc’s (Pfizer) oral COVID-19 antiviral treatment, Paxlovid, in high-risk patients in the early stages of the disease, to avoid hospitalisation. However, WHO is quick to mention that existing COVID-19 treatments including intravenous and antibody treatments, are not to replace vaccination.

The recommendation by WHO comes after an analysis of trial data by the United Nations agency showed incorporation of the Paxlovid treatment in 3,100 patients dramatically cuts the risk of hospitalisation. For those with over 10% risk of hospitalisation, using Paxlovid could lead to 84 fewer hospitalisations per 1,000 patients – an overall 85% reduction in risk.

“These therapeutics do not replace vaccination. They just give us another treatment option for those patients that do get infected that are at higher risk,” said Janet Diaz, Lead on Clinical Management, WHO, referring to patients who have underlying chronic conditions, or are immunocompromised or unvaccinated.

Pfizer expects Paxlovid to bring in US$22 billion in sales in 2022, according to a statement earlier this year. The drugmaker has agreed to sell up to 4 million treatment courses to UNICEF for use in 95 low-income countries that encompass just over half the world’s population. This deal accounts for just over 3% of Pfizer’s projected production of 120 million courses this year.

While recommended, Paxlovid is known to interact with many common medications, complicating its use. Paxlovid has also not been investigated for use in pregnant of breastfeeding women, or children.

Separately, the WHO has updated its recommendation on Gilead Science’s COVID-19 treatment, remdesivir, saying it should be used in mild or moderate COVID-19 patients at high risk of hospitalisation. It had previously recommended its use in all COVID-19 patients, regardless of disease severity.

Read: Pfizer, UNICEF to supply Paxlovid COVID-19 oral treatment for low-, middle-income countries

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