KYW Newsradio’s Medical Reports are sponsored by Independence Blue Cross.
By Dr. Brian McDonough, Medical Editor
PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — There is a lot of talk about remdesivir, a medication we are using on many of our COVID-19 patients.
According to a report in the New England Journal of Medicine, people on remdesivir recovered on average in 10 days, compared to 15 days for those only receiving supportive care like oxygen and IV fluids.
Here is the most important point: the drug did not appear to alter a person's risk of dying from COVID-19.
Remdesivir fights COVID-19 by hampering the coronavirus' ability to replicate inside human cells, but it is not a magic bullet.