WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said its Solidarity Trial would continue after it was launched in March in 500 hospitals in 30 countries to assess the efficacy of remdesivir and several other drugs in patients with COVID-19.
The Solidarity Trial was at the centre of a dispute on Friday between the WHO and the U.S. company, Gilead, that developed remdesivir. According to Gilead WHO trial’s findings appeared inconsistent with evidence from other studies.
The WHO’s trial also found that other medicines repurposed since the pandemic began – malaria drug hydroxychloroquine, anti-HIV drug combination lopinavir/ritonavir and interferon – offered little or no benefit to COVID-19 patients.