Arthritis drug baricitinib was found to reduce the risk of death in hospitalized COVID-19 patients by around 13%, irrespective of the type of other COVID-19 treatment administered to the patients, in a large UK trial.

More than 8,000 patients randomly received baricitinib besides usual care, or usual care only, as part of the RECOVERY trial. A total of 546 patients in the usual care group died within 28 days, compared to 513 patients in the baricitinib group, where the patients also received a corticosteroid such as dexamethasone, tocilizumab or remdesivir. These results add to previous findings and provide more certainty that baricitinib is beneficial for COVID patients.

A World Health Organization panel had recommended the use of baricitinib earlier this year in patients with severe COVID-19, along with corticosteroids… (Reuters, March 3, 2022)