Japan approves COVID-19 pill Molnupiravir amid concerns over Omicron variant: Report

Amid growing concerns over the spread of the Omicron variant, Japan's government on Friday approved the  Molnupiravir, an antiviral pill against the Coronavirus. The pill became the first of its kind to get approval in the country, reported Japanese news agency Kyodo news. Merck & Co's Molnupiravir, which thwarts Coronavirus growing further in the body, was approved under a fast-track process after MSD K.K., Merck's Japanese branch, applied to manufacture and market the drug in Japan earlier this month. The pill is also likely effective against the Omicron variant of the virus, according to the Japanese subsidiary. Patients over the age of 18 who have minor symptoms can take the pill twice a day for five days.

According to Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, as many as 200,000 doses of the pill would be supplied across the country starting this weekend. The Japanese government has already committed to purchasing 1.6 million doses from Merck, he added. Meanwhile, Japan's minister of health Shigeyuki Goto told reporters that the medicine would be available in medical facilities as early as December 27. In order to decrease contact between patients and outsiders, the ministry will also engage with drugstores to enable patients to receive treatment at home, he added as per the Japanese news agency. 

Molnupiravir, which was approved in the United Kingdom in November, has gained attention as the world's first orally administered COVID-19 medication. However, according to British regulators, the pill has not been advised for pregnant women and minors. On Thursday, December 23, the Food and Drug Administration in the United States granted emergency use authorisation for the drug, but cautioned that it should only be used when other approved COVID-19 treatments are unavailable or clinically inappropriate. 

Molnupiravir cuts mortality rate & hospitalisation by 50%: Study

According to the Japanese subsidiary, patients who received the drug within five days of developing coronavirus symptoms were 30% less likely to be hospitalised or die than those who received a placebo. It should be mentioned here that the United Kingdom was the first country to give approval to the antiviral pill. In October, the UK government announced that it had secured 480,000 courses of the Molnupiravir after research revealed that the drug lowered the rate of hospital admissions and mortality by 50%. Notably, Ridgeback Biotherapeutics and Merck Sharp & Dohme collaborated to develop the drug, which operates by interfering with the virus's replication. Meanwhile, Molnupiravir is easier to store than messenger RNA vaccines since it does not require cold storage. 

Image: AP