DCGI approves Itolizumab for restricted emergency use in COVID-19 treatment
The approval was given after its clinical trials on COVID-19 patients in India was found satisfactory by an expert committee, informed the drug regulator
India’s drug regulator has approved Itolizumab, a medicine used to cure psoriasis for “restricted emergency use” to treat COVID-19 patients with moderate to severe acute respiratory distress, informed officials.
Dr V G Somani, approved monoclonal antibody injection Itolizumab, an already approved drug of Biocon for several years, for restricted emergency use. It is for the treatment of ‘cytokine’ release syndrome in moderate to severe acute respiratory distress syndrome patients due to COVID-19, they said.
“The approval was given after its clinical trials on COVID-19 patients in India was found satisfactory by the expert committee comprising pulmonologists, pharmacologists and medical experts from AIIMS, among others, for treatment of cytokine release syndrome,” an official told PTI.
Written informed consent of each patient is required before the use of this drug, he said.
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BIOCON should reduce the price of the drug for Covid patients. Not all can pay Rs 32000/- for the full course. Of course, people will beg, borrow or steal when it is a question of life and death, but Biocon will earn the respect of the country if the price is lowered for Covid patients. A Covid storm is coming.