Paxlovid Benefits Some COVID-19 Patients

For the past few years, the question has been whether nirmatrelvir–ritonavir (Paxlovid™) conferred measurable benefits to persons who had been vaccinated or who did not have risk factors for severe COVID-19.

The New England Journal of Medicine recently published results from a phase 2/3 clinical study sponsored by Pfizer Inc. that concluded that the time to sustained alleviation of all signs and symptoms of COVID-19 did not differ significantly between participants who received nirmatrelvir–ritonavir and those who received placebo.

The median time to sustained alleviation of all targeted signs and symptoms of COVID-19 was 12 days in the nirmatrelvir–ritonavir group and 13 days in the placebo group (P=0.60).

The median age of study participants was 42 years, with very few seniors involved.

On April 3, 2024, a related editorial written by Rajesh T. Gandhi, MD, and Martin Hirsch, MD, stated, 'Clearly, the benefit (from Paxlovid) observed among unvaccinated high-risk persons does not extend to those at lower risk for severe COVID-19.'

'This result supports guidelines recommending nirmatrelvir–ritonavir only for persons at high risk for disease progression.'

'The ongoing clinical burden of COVID-19 necessitates the availability of effective, easily accessible oral treatments that can shorten the time to resolution of symptoms and reduce the risk of severe COVID-19.'