The Ministry of Health will start using a more effective drug to treat Covid-19 patients after the country reported seven deaths on October 10, the highest death toll in a day since the pandemic hit Uganda in March.
Unlike the previous treatment that focused on managing Covid-19 symptoms, Remdesivir is an antiviral drug that directly attacks the coronavirus and hinders its ability to reproduce.
Of the seven deaths reported by the Ministry of Health, three were from Kampala, four from Mbarara, Jinja, Mbale, and Masaka districts.
Dr. Bruce Kirenga, the director of Makerere University Lung Institute, who is treating Covid-19 patients at Mulago hospital, said he is training health workers on how to use Remdesivir to treat Covid-19 patients.
Dr. Kirenga said by tomorrow, they will have administered some doses, adding that if people continue to seek help early when they experience Covid-19 symptoms, the number of Covid-19 deaths will reduce.
Remdesivir is an investigational drug that was first developed for Ebola but has been issued an emergency use for the management of Covid-19 from a number of drug regulatory authorities worldwide including the US Food and Drug Administration.
The National Drug Authority (NDA) has also approved the importation and use of Remdesivir injection in the country for the treatment of Covid-19 cases.
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