India's Dr.Reddy's ends study of COVID-19 drug Avigan in Kuwait

with input from Agencies

Thursday, January 28, 2021

India's Drug major Dr. Reddy's Laboratories said on Wednesday it had terminated its clinical study of Fujifilm Holdings' Covid-19 treatment Avigan in patients with moderate to severe symptoms in Kuwait, agencies reported.

Dr. Reddy's Laboratories is an Indian multinational pharmaceutical company headquartered in Hyderabad, Telangana.

According to Reuters, data from the Kuwait trial, conducted in partnership with United Arab Emirates-based medical alliance Global Response Aid FZCO (GRA), showed that the difference in time taken by Avigan and placebo to resolve a sustained absence of oxygen in the tissues was not significant enough to continue the trial.

Fujifilm, Dr. Reddy's and GRA had entered into a deal in July to sell Avigan globally excluding Japan, China and Russia.

Avigan was approved as an anti-flu drug in Japan in 2014, and Fujifilm has been seeking approval for the drug as a treatment for Covid-19 since October.

The Japanese health ministry's medical review board last month concluded that clinical trial data to determine Avigan's efficacy for Covid-19 was inconclusive, agencies added.

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