Zydus' Virafin gets emergency use approval for treating moderate COVID-19 cases

Zydus Cadila on Friday announced that it has received restricted emergency use approval from the Drug Controller General of India (DCGI) to use antiviral drug Virafin for the treatment of moderate COVID-19 infections.

A single dose subcutaneous regimen of the antiviral drug will make treatment of COVID-19 disease more convenient.

In its regulatory filing, the company said, "When administered early on during COVID, Virafin will help patients recover faster and avoid much of the complications. Virafin will be available on the prescription of medical specialist for use in hospital/institutional setup."

"In the multicentric trial conducted in 20-25 centers across India, Virafin had shown lesser need for supplemental oxygen, clearly indicating that it was able to control respiratory distress and failure which has been one of the major challenges in treating COVID-19. The drug has also shown efficacy against other viral infections," the company also said.

"In its Phase III clinical trials, the therapy had shown better clinical improvement in the patients suffering from COVID-19. During the trials, a higher proportion of patients administered with PegIFN arm were RT PCR negative by day 7. The drug ensures faster viral clearance and has several add-on advantages compared to other anti-viral agents," it also said.

Dr. Sharvil Patel, Managing Director, Cadila Healthcare Limited, stated, “The fact that we are able to offer a therapy which significantly reduces viral load when given early on can help in better disease management. It comes at a much-needed time for patients and we will continue to provide them access to critical therapies in this battle against COVID-19."

India added a record over 3.32 lakh new coronavirus cases in a single day taking the country's tally to 1,62,63,695, while active cases crossed the 24-lakh mark, according to the Union Health Ministry data updated on Friday.

The death toll increased to 1,86,920 with a record 2,263 new fatalities. The country recorded a single day rise of 3,32,730 new cases, the data updated at 8 am showed.