A World Health Organization (WHO) panel has recommended the use of two drugs from Eli Lilly, and GlaxoSmithKline and Vir Biotechnology, for the treatment of COVID-19 patients.

The panel has strongly recommended the use of Eli Lilly’s baricitinib for patients with severe COVID-19, along with corticosteroids, and has given conditional approval to GSK-Vir’s antibody treatment for non-severe patients who have the highest risk of hospitalization. GSK-Vir’s monoclonal antibody treatment is the only one that has been found to be effective against Omicron variant in laboratory tests thus far. Similar treatments from Eli Lilly and Co and Regeneron Pharmaceuticals have been shown to confer lower protection.

The WHO guidelines stated that baricitinib has been found to improve survival rate and decrease the requirement for ventilation, with no increase in adverse effects. The guidelines are published in the British Medical Journal… (The Indian Express – Reuters, January 14, 2022)