Covid: Molnopiravir reaches clinics and pharmacies – 10/27/2022 – Equilíbrio e Saúde

This week, the antiviral antiviral molnoperavir begins to arrive in pharmacies and private clinics in Brazil. Manufactured by MSD Pharmaceuticals under the brand name Lagevrio, it is approved in Brazil for the treatment of adult patients with COVID-19 Mild or moderate, non-hospitalized, not requiring supplemental oxygenation and at high risk of disease exacerbation.

According to the company, the oral antiviral will be available in hospitals, oncology clinics and pharmacies that have already expressed an interest in acquiring the product. The sale requires a prescription and the estimate is that the treatment will cost the consumer, on average, R$1,700.

The Anvisa (National Health Surveillance Agency) It approved the emergency use of the antiviral for adults at risk of disease progression in May after which the product was evaluated by Conitec (National Committee for the Integration of Technologies in the Unified Health System), which examined the potential benefits and effects of its inclusion in the SUS.

in your reportThe review team stated that the drug “likely reduces the risk of hospitalization or death in patients with mild to moderate Covid-19 who are at risk of exacerbation of the disease,” but that “the absolute effect is modest and much less than that of another drug.” Already established for the same indicator.”

Preliminary data from a trial conducted in the United Kingdom With more than 25,000 people indicating that antivirals can speed a patient’s recovery time, but they won’t reduce hospitalizations.

The Conitec report is based on a phase III clinical trial of 1,433 unvaccinated patients with at least one risk factor for exacerbation of the disease. The participants were divided into two groups, one receiving a placebo and the other receiving 800 mg of molnopiravir twice daily for five days. The risk of hospitalization or death in the molopiravir group was 6.8% versus 9.7% in the placebo group.

The team also states that the systematic review it published World Health Organization (WHO) In March, it showed a reduction of 43 hospital admissions per 1,000 patients treated with molnopiravir compared to placebo, evidence classified as moderate certainty. In the event of death, Molnopiravir will prevent six deaths per 1,000 patients, and the evidence is classified as low-certainty.

As for the economic analysis of incorporation into SUS, Conitec compared molnupiravir with nirmatrelvir/ritonavir — a drug recently incorporated into SUS for the same indication — and concluded that it would have resulted in higher cost and lower efficacy.

Based on the evaluation, Conitec recommended that it not be incorporated into SUS. Opinion can be re-evaluated if new facts are presented capable of changing the outcome of the analysis.