Hyderabad: Remdesivir not a lifesaver, but Dexamethasone best

Hyderabad: Blackmarketing of Remdesivir is at peak. It is not a lifesaver remedy for corona virus, it's just an antiviral drug that is still under trial. It has not yet been proved that it saves lives of Covid patients who are in critical condition. But still, it is been sold in black market while dexamethasone is more effective than Remdesivir; and it costs just Rs 15.

The demand for the Remdesivir injection has led to blackmarketing prompting the police to arrest those who are selling it at high price illegally. The actual price of this injection is Rs. 5,400 while it is being sold between Rs. 35,000 to one lakh to the needy. Why is Remdesivir being sold so costly? Why is it in demand? Is it so effective that it can be bought at exorbitant prices? Is it the lifesaver for a Corona patient? The answer is absolutely no. According to experts, Remdesivir is not an effective drug to eradicate corona.

If it cannot cure a Covid-19 patient then why is this vaccine in so much demand during a global pandemic and why are people buying it at any cost? Let us know for which disease this medicine was made.

According to reports, Remdesivir was developed to treat hepatitis C, MARS, SARC and Ebola but it could not be proved it is efficient in treating those viruses.

The drug has halted for a long time and was not used in any treatment until the corona virus outbreak. As this was meant to treat the viruses similar to Covid-19 and there was no remedy to cure the Novel CoronaVirus this drug was the only ray of hope. Many trials of Remdesivir were conducted in America and China but it proved not an effective option. The Food and Drug Association (FDA) has approved it and allowed the use of Remdesivir under conditional emergency use of authenticity.

State health officials repeatedly requested people that Remdesivir is not a lifesaver and it is an antiviral drug and still under trial people should not prefer it over medicines being provided by the State government. Despite the requests and warnings, people are paying a hefty amount for it.

Dr Sanjeev Kumar, a Pulmonologist, has revealed that "the Remdesivir is not at all lifesaver it could not treat the patient even with mild symptoms." He said that after failing in the purpose for which the drug was made, how can the drug cure such a strong virus. The doctor said that after the outbreak of corona virus, several experiments were

performed on it and it found be of no effect, yet the FDA conditionally approved its sale, recommending that it be used only in the Emergency Use Authenticity".

He added that there are three categories of medicines. A medicine that falls under the first stage is said to be effective, medicine which stands second in a category will not be effective can be used rarely, while the medicine in the third stage is harmful and can not be used and Remdesivir stands in the second category", the Doctor said.

Speaking about the best alternative of Remdesivir, Dr Sanjeev Kumar

said that Dexamethasone has been found very effective, with very good results and it is a lifesaver compared to Remdesivir. Dexamethasone has developed for asthma patients but it is found that it is working on high-risk patients. Though the use of the drug raises blood sugar levels, diabetics suggested using it with a doctor's advice. It is available in the form of injections and tablets and costs very less.

Dexamethasone injection costs Rs 15 and the tablet cost is Rs 2 Maximum and it is available very easily in the market.

The public should be encouraged to use it and the black market of remediation should be stopped, Dr Sanjeev said.