Incepta launches Pfizer’s anti-Covid pill

Incepta, one of the leading pharmaceutical companies in the country, has announced the launching of Pfizer's oral antiviral medication – Paxlovid – for the treatment of Covid-19.

Incepta Pharmaceuticals Limited will market the drug under the brand name of Jupitavir, said a press release.

The Directorate General of Drug Administration (DGDA) granted emergency use authorization for the drug to treat mild-to-moderate Covid-19 patients including adults and children aged 12 years and above.

Earlier on 22 December 2021, the US Food and Drug Administration (US FDA) granted emergency use authorization to the drug as the first approved oral therapy for Covid-19 treatment.

This novel antiviral pill showed almost 90 percent efficacy in preventing hospitalisations and deaths in high-risk patients, and recent lab data suggests that the drug retains its effectiveness against the fast-spreading Omicron variant of the coronavirus.

The drug is co-packaged with Nirmatrelvir and Ritonavir tablets.

Nirmatrelvir inhibits a SARS-CoV-2 enzyme to stop the virus from replicating, and Ritonavir slows down Nirmatrelvir's breakdown to help it remain in the body for a longer period at higher concentrations.

The treatment is given as two tablets of Nirmatrelvir and one tablet of Ritonavir together twice a day for five days. Jupitavir is available by prescription only and should be initiated as soon as possible after the diagnosis of Covid-19 and within five days of symptom onset.