The United Kingdom today approved the use of GSK drug for critical Covid patients. Regulators in the UK gave a go-ahead signal today for the use of a monoclonal therapy, called sotrovimab, to treat Covid patients at high risk of developing severe symptoms.
GlaxoSmithKline said that its drug is also effective against Omicron, the new Covid variant.
Earlier, Pfizer launched its drug to treat the Covid patients. The news of GSK drug approval in UK came as South Korea’s daily coronavirus case numbers rose to a new high with authorities halting quarantine exemptions for fully vaccinated inbound travellers for two weeks in a bid to fend off the new variant.
Meanwhile in the United States, fears over the impact of the new coronavirus strain have risen after it reported its first case in a fully vaccinated person in California. The case returned from South Africa on November 22 and tested positive seven days later.
In South Africa, where scientists detected the omicron variant last week, new infections doubled in a day signaling a dramatic surge in the country.
The World Health Organization (WHO) said data on how contagious Omicron is should be available “within days”, while the Japanese central bank warned of economic pain as countries tighten containment measures.
