SAN FRANCISCO, May 05, (THEWILL) – The Minister of Health, Osagie Ehanire, has revealed that Nigeria has started using remdesivir, an anti-retroviral drug, in managing COVID-19 patients.
Addressing members of the house of representatives on Tuesday, Ehanire said the drug has been administered to patients in Lagos state.
“We have been using that (remdesivir); we have tried that in Lagos too,” he said.
“So, we have tried the antiretroviral drug to see what effect it has.”
The minister said the drug, originally developed as a potential treatment for Ebola, is one of the options which Nigeria has adopted in treating COVID-19 patients.
But he said no herbal medicine has so far been approved for the disease.
Gilead Sciences, the pharmaceutical company that developed the drug, said it was found to be effective on the patients but said the optimal duration of treatment is still being studied in ongoing clinical trials.