China claims Japan’s Flu Drug is clearly effective in eliminating the Coronavirus
By Asfakur Rahman Niloy
(Student, Dept. of CSE, Northern University Bangladesh)
The “Favipiravir” drug, invented by the FUJIFILM Toyama Company of Japan, has proven effective in preventing coronavirus.
Japanese media says Chinese hospital authorities say that the flu drug used in Japan is effective in preventing new species from viruses in a person infected with the coronavirus.
According to Zhang Jin Min, a spokesman for the Chinese Ministry of Science and Technology says, “Favipiravir”, discovered by a Fujifilm-based entity, has been found to be effective after experimental use in Wuhan and Shenzhen’s 340 people who were infected with Coronavirus.
Zhang told reporters, “It has a high-security protection power and is clearly effective in treatment.”
Japan Broadcasting Corporation (Nippon Hōsō Kyōkai-NHK) says, the drug was applied to a patient in Shenzhen, who was infected with the Coronavirus, in the middle of the 4th week he was diagnosed with a negative virus test.
He was compared to a patient who had not used the drug for 11 days. The X-ray report noted a significant improvement in 91% of patients treated by “Favipiravir”.
And 62% of those who did not receive it was compared to those who used “Favipiravir”.
FUJIFILM Toyama, a company that manufactured the drug in 2014, also known as Avigan, they declined to comment in regard to it.
Japanese doctors are using the same drug in patients with mild or moderate symptoms for clinical research trails. They hope this will prevent the number of patients from increasing”.
But a source from Japan’s Health Ministry said that the drug did not work well for those with more severe symptoms. The source told The Japanese daily “The Mainichi Shinbun”,
They applied Avigan in 70-80 patients, but if the virus has multiplied many times it will not work properly.
The source also said that the combination of HIV-Antiretrovirals (Lopinavir & Ritonavir) has been tested with the use of coronavirus patients and the limitations of “Favipiravir” have been identified.
In February 2016 the Japanese government sent Favipiravi’s drug as emergency aid to prevent Ebola infection in Guinea.
Favipiravir will require the government’s permission to be used for all COVID-19 patients because it was originally used to cure the flu.
A health worker tells THE Mainichi Shinbun, “This drug may be approved in early May”.
But if there is a delay in getting the results of the clinical study, it may take time for approval. ”
Source: The Guardian
