The World Health Organization has now recommended that an anti-COVID pill should be taken by people infected with COVID-19 who have mild symptoms but are at high risk of hospitalization, such as older individuals or those who have not received a COVID-19 vaccine.

The pill, called molnupiravir, developed by Merck, is taken as soon as possible after COVID-19 symptoms develop and then for a duration of five days. A WHO expert group stated in the British Medical Journal that individuals with a weak immune system or having a chronic disease were also recommended to take the pill if they had non-severe COVID-19. They further stated that young and healthy patients, including children, and pregnant and breastfeeding women, should not be given the drug.

The recommendation has come after the results of six randomized controlled trials, involving 4,796 patients, revealed that molnupiravir reduced the risk of hospitalization, with 43 fewer admissions per 1,000 high-risk patients. It also accelerated the clearing of symptoms by an average of 3.4 days… (NDTV – AFP, March 3, 2022)