Adding barcitinib to remdesivir improves recovery time and outcomes in COVID-19

Eli Lilly (NYSE: LLY) and Incyte (Nasdaq: INCY) are sharing additional data showing baricitinib in combination with remdesivir reduced time to recovery and improved clinical outcomes for patients with COVID-19 infection compared with remdesivir.

This finding was part of additional efficacy and safety data from the Adaptive COVID-19 Treatment Trial (ACTT-2) sponsored by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The largest benefits were observed in patients requiring supplemental oxygen and those who required high-flow oxygen/non-invasive ventilation at baseline.

"These results add to the potential role for baricitinib to treat hospitalized COVID-19 patients"As previously reported, ACTT-2 achieved the primary endpoint, demonstrating that the overall patient population treated with baricitinib in combination with remdesivir improved their median time to recovery from eight to seven in comparison to the Gilead Sciences (Nasdaq: GILD) drug alone, representing a 12.5% improvement.