Japan approves the "first official drug" to treat corona virus

Japan approves the "first official drug" to treat corona virus

A Japanese Ministry of Health official announced on Thursday that country has started using the American Gilead Sciences Inc., a Remediffer drug, to treat patients with severe symptoms of Covid-19.

This development came days after the drug was given urgent approval as part of efforts to curb the spread of the Coruna virus.

The ministry official, Yasuyuki Sahara, added that the drug has been distributed to Japanese hospitals since May 11, where it is used to treat patients in intensive care units or those who use ventilators.

Gilead, California-based, has pledged to donate the first half-and-a-half million doses of Remediffer.

A spokesman for the company said that part of this amount was given to the Japanese government, without giving further details.

Japan has recorded about 16,000 cases of corona virus and 687 deaths, which is much lower than in many industrialized countries.

According to the latest statistics of the Ministry of Health, the number of serious cases requiring the use of ventilators is 259.

The interest in the drug is increasing worldwide, as no other treatment has received a permit to use it. On May 1, the US Food and Drug Administration approved the emergency use of the drug that is given to patients intravenously.

Gilead says the drug has produced better results for people with the respiratory disease, and has provided data suggesting that it will work better when used in the early stages of infection.

Remediffer had previously not worked as a treatment for Ebola. It was designed to prevent some viruses from copying themselves into infected cells.