Pfizer announced today that it’s new anti-viral oral drug Paxlovid has been effective in clinical trials in preventing the replication of the Omicron variant, a positive sign for anyone trying to reduce the variant’s adverse effects. “Taken together, these in vitro studies suggest that Paxlovid has the potential to maintain plasma concentrations many-fold times higher than the amount required to prevent Omicron from replicating in cells,” Pfizer said today in a press release. Getting Paxlovid to market should take time rolling out the new anti-viral drug that works like Remdesivir or Veklury, a drug that came with some serious side effects. Pfizer’s active anti-viral agent nirmatelvir worked effectively to prevent the Omicron variant from replicating, “a potent inhibitor of its target,” Pfizer reported. Pfizer also reported that Paxlovid worked effectively with the original SARS CoV-2 and Delta variants.
Omciron variant now accounts for over 97% of new SARS CoV-2 cases in the United States, presenting problems with mRNA and adenovirus vaccines, both types provide inadequate protection against Omcron infection. Full vaccine protection, including boosters, provide the best protection against severe disease, hospitalization and death, but the exact benefits vary based on patients’ age, immunity, pre-existing conditions and other factors affecting whether Covid-19 infections morph into more serious disease. A new study at New York City-based Carl Ichan’s Mt. Sinai School of Medicine found that Paxlovid or nirmatrevelir was needed to stop Omicron viral replication. “These data suggest that our oral Covid-19 therapy can be an important and effective tool in our continued battle against this devastating virus and current variants of concern, including the highly transmissible Omicron,” said Pfizer’s Dr. Mikael Dolsten.
Dolsten, Pfizer’s Chief Scientific Officer, thinks there’s much scientific promise in Paxlovid to help stop Omicron replication to prevent emergence of symptoms and severe disease. “We will continue to monitor the treatment’s activity in the real-world settings and believe that these in vitro findings will continue to be validated,” Dolsten said. U.S. Food and Drug Administration gave Paxlovid Emergency Use Authorization for anyone 12 or older at risk of severe disease. Preliminary reports of Omicron causing less severe disease have not panned out, with hospital and ICU beds filling up around the country. Pfizer’s Paxlovid hopes to cut the risk of hospitalization or death by 89%, when given to Covid patients within a few days of exposure. Determining exposure has been difficult from the lack of antigen or PCR testing available to average citizens exposed to the Omicron variant.
U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC] say that 63% of the total U.S. population [of all ages] or 209 million have are fully vaccinated. About 75.1% of the U.S. population has received at least one dose, not considered enough to stop Omicron infection now accounting for 97% of the U.S. population. About 20.1% of the U.S. population or 63 million is not vaccinated at all, leaving them vulnerable to severe disease, hospitalization and death, something President Joe Biden calls the “pandemic of the unvaccinated.” But new CDC data shows that breakthrough infections are occurring at higher rates than the original novel coronavirus and Delta variants. So when it comes to fully vaccinated and boosted patients breakthrough infection are occurring at higher rates with the Omicron variant. About 1,158,537 doses of mRNA and adenovirus vaccines have been administered each day. About 666,000 booster does are administered daily, accounting for the most shots.
Johns Hopkins Medical Center estimated about 296,000 are receiving their first vaccines each day. About 786,000 new Omicron Covid cases occur a day, about 2.4 times as high. Apart from vaccine efforts, the CDC now recommends a N95 or KN95 masks to give better protection from transmitting disease. Biden has promised getting N95 or KN95 masks to every American citizen, currently using a variety of face-coverings, including surgical masks, even bandannas. Social distancing guidelines especially in sporting and recreational venues have also added to the current surge in Omicron cases. Whether Omicron has begun, in some places, to peak or decline is anyone’s guess. Because of the highly infectious nature of the Omicron variant, hospitalizations continue to present problems for county health officials around the state, unable to manage existing Covid cases.
Omiron has thrown U.S. health officials for a loop, defying protection given by mRNA and adenonvirus vaccines, leaving untold numbers of breakthrough infections. CDC officials can’t determine with certainty whether fully vaccinated-and-boosted citizens have eight times less chance of infection and 21 times less chance of severe disease, hospitalization and death. Omicron has not shown less severe symptoms, only that prior infections and vaccines have not stopped new infections. CDC officials don’t know whether the end of the Omicron surge represents the beginning-of-the-end to the pandemic. Whether a new variant emerges is not altogether certain as well. What’s known now is that Pfizer’s oral anti-viral Paxlovid offers hope to stop Omicron from developing into severe disease, if the drug can start with one to two days of transmission, something not easy to do.
