Geneva, November 20: The World Health Organisation (WHO) on Friday suspended Gilead's remdesivir from the pre-qualification list of medicines for the treatment of COVID-19, reported global news agency Reuters. A WHO panel said that the world medical body found no evidence that improved survival or reduced the need for ventilation.

Tarik Jasarevic confirmed the development of the global news agency. "The suspension is a signal to countries that WHO, in compliance with the treatment guidelines, does not recommend countries procure the drug for COVID," reported Reuters quoting Jasarevic as saying. WHO Warns Against Remdesivir for COVID-19 Treatment.

The WHO recommendation, published in the British Medical Journal, was based on an evidence review that included data from four international randomised trials among more than 7,000 hospitalised patients. COVID-19 Vaccine Update: Oxford University Coronavirus Vaccine ‘Encouraging’ for Older Age Groups.

The antiviral is one of only two medicines currently authorised to treat Covid-19 patients across the world. It has been approved for use in the US, the European Union and other countries after initial research found it may shorten recovery time in some COVID-19 patients. The drug is extremely expensive.

Gilead said last month that the drug had boosted its third-quarter sales by about $900 million. The development came at a time when overall number of global coronavirus cases has topped 56.8 million, while the deaths have surged to more than 1.35 million, according to the Johns Hopkins University.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Nov 20, 2020 09:49 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).