Paxlovid not be included in national treatment guidelines for COVID-19, says ICMR

"Members of ICMR's National Task Force on Covid-19 had met last week to discuss the matter but did not find merit in the drug's inclusion in the national treatment guidelines for Covid-19. The current evidence did not merit the inclusion of Paxlovid in the treatment guidelines and the existing guidelines stand valid," Samiran Panda, head of epidemiology and infectious diseases at ICMR, told the Economic Times. Panda also added that the experts are awaiting data from ongoing trials and will review it further as data comes.

"As of now, the current evidence doesn't support its inclusion. But there are trials which are undergoing and we are waiting for more data and will review it again," Panda said.

Medical Dialogues had earlier reported that a similar fate was met with another COVID-19 drug, when the ICMR refused to include it the national guidelines.

Paxlovid drug was approved last month for restricted emergency use against Covid-19 amid rising cases in the country. Yet, its efficacious use is still being debated

Pfizer Inc recently had said a large trial found that its COVID-19 oral antiviral treatment Paxlovid was not effective at preventing coronavirus infection in people living with someone infected with the virus.

The trial enrolled 3,000 adults who were household contacts exposed to an individual who was experiencing symptoms and had recently tested positive for COVID-19. They were either given Paxlovid for five or 10 days or a placebo. Those who took the five-day course were found to be 32% less likely to become infected than the placebo group. That rose to 37% with 10 days of Paxlovid. However, the results were not statistically significant and thus possibly due to chance.

Last week The World Health Organization said it "strongly recommended" Pfizer's Covid-19 antiviral pill Paxlovid for patients with milder forms of the disease who were still at a high risk of hospitalisation. World Health Organization (WHO) has strongly recommended the drug in patients with mild and moderate forms of coronavirus disease (Covid-19) at the highest risk of hospitalization. The recommendation is based on data from two randomized controlled trials showing that the risk of hospital admission is reduced by 85% following the administration of the drug in a high-risk group.