The Minister of Health, Osagie Ehanire has revealed that the drug used in treating coronavirus patients in Nigeria is a broad-spectrum anti-retroviral medication called ‘Remdesivir’.
Ehanire, who made this revelation during a press briefing on Tuesday, said treatment with Remdesivir is given by injection into a vein.
“We have been using that drug (Remdesivir). We have tried that in Lagos too.
“So, we have tried the anti-retroviral drug to see what effect it has,” he said.
The drug, according to the minister, was originally developed as a potential treatment for Ebola and has been adopted by the government as of the options for treatment of COVID-19 patients.
Remdesivir is being tested as a specific treatment for coronavirus, and the US had approved emergency use of the drug for treatment of those with severe COVID-19 symptoms.
KanyiDaily had reported that a Nigerian doctor, Babafemi Taiwo is leading a major study on the antiviral drug ‘Remdesivir’ in the United States.
Dr Taiwo was interviewed by CNN and he explained the promising result of the drug in treating COVID-19 patients.
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