The Philippines’ Department of Health has announced that the country is set to begin clinical trials of the anti-flu medication ‘Avigan’ to test how effective it is in combatting the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) that has affected over 10,000 individuals in the country.
Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergiere revealed that Japan will be providing a free supply of the said drug, good for around 100 individuals.
“We choose hospitals that will participate in the trial. And from those hospitals, we will have a protocol on how we will choose the patients. Because this is a clinical trial, informed consent should be there,” said Vergiere.
DOH furthered that they are currently formulating protocols to begin the tests and are now in process of selecting hospitals to participate in the trial phase.
Avigan is the brand name of favipiravir, a drug that was used in Japan for flu outbreaks which aren’t being addressed by previously prescribed medications.
In China, clinical trials of Avigan has suggested that the drug plays a role to hasten the recovery process of patients afflicted with the virus.
To date, countries that have begun Avigan testing include Italy, Japan, China, and the United States.
