PUTRAJAYA (Bernama): Trials on the medicine tocilizumab to treat Covid-19 patients are ongoing, says Health director-general Datuk Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah (pic).
In confirming that the Health Ministry was conducting a study with a local university, he said he hoped the research would help in curbing the Covid-19 pandemic.
“What is important is that we look at how the research is being conducted at four hospitals, if I am not mistaken, and we hope they comply with the standard operating procedures (SOPs) and the procedures for conducting the investigation,” he told a daily media conference on Covid-19 here on Sunday (April 12).
Earlier, he said three drugs – chloroquine, hydroxychloroquine and the existing lopinavir/ ritonavir combination – were available in Malaysia, and which were used to treat other diseases, were also found to be effective in treating Covid-19 positive patients.
Earlier, media reports stated that the Universiti Malaya Medical Centre (UMMC) along with three government hospitals, namely, Sungai Buloh Hospital, Kuala Lumpur Hospital and Tuanku Jaafar Seremban Hospital, would begin clinical trials to find a cure for Covid-19.
The focus of this study is tocilizumab which is marketed under the Actemra brand.
It was reported that studies on tocilizumab, previously a medicine for rheumatoid arthritis or arthritis, would focus on intravenous tocilizumab comparison with high doses of corticosteroids on 300 severe Covid-19 patients.
Asked about the development of a Covid-19 vaccine, Dr Noor Hisham said it was still under research and expected to be completed in a year.
“Many studies have been carried out by the World Health Organisation (WHO) and several international organisations, so let us together hope the vaccine can be found in a year,” he added. – Bernama
