AFP reported that a draft summary went online briefly on the website of the WHO and was first reported by the Financial Times and Stat, which posted a screenshot. The WHO has since admitted that the documents were mistakenly uploaded, reported the BBC.
According to reports, the study was conducted on 237 patients; 158 were administered the drug and the progress was compared to 79, who received placebo. 13.9 per cent of the drug-administered patients had died compared to 12.8 percent of those in the control group (placebo). Due to side-effects, the trials stopped early. "Remdesivir was not associated with clinical or virological benefits," the summary stated.
In a statement, Gilead Sciences disputed the reports. "We believe the post included inappropriate characterisations of the study. As such, the study results are inconclusive, though trends in the data suggest a potential benefit for remdesivir, particularly among patients treated early in disease."
It was widely believed that the anti-viral drug, used most recently against the Ebola outbreak, could prove to be very effective in stopping the replication mechanism of the SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes COVID-19. Once the mass replication of the virus is stopped, the pathogen can be defanged to a large extent. In a recent medical trial, a majority of the limited test subjects showed improvement in condition, which bolsters hope for a quicker path to the cure.
The US Centre for Disease Control (CDC) has cited remdesivir as an investigational therapeutic against COVID-19, dubbing it an "investigational intravenous drug with broad antiviral activity that inhibits viral replication through premature termination of RNA transcription, and has in-vitro activity against SARS-CoV-2".
The ICMR said research on its efficacy in the treatment of COVID-19 is a part of WHO's "Solidarity Trial". Head of Epidemiology and Communicable diseases at ICMR, Raman R. Gangakhedkar, said that drug which was used against Ebola virus, according to the researchers, hinders the reproduction of coronavirus which is why they believe that it could be effective in COVID-19 treatment.
