For those at high risk, Pfizer's antiviral drug helps stave off severe COVID-19. Now research suggests it may also reduce their chances of long COVID.
Patients had a reduced risk of developing long COVID after taking Paxlovid, and the benefits were seen among those who were vaccinated and unvaccinated.
The drug, which has been available in the U.S. for almost a year, is provided for free by the federal government at The benefits of taking Paxlovid didn't just apply to those who were unvaccinated. Patients who were vaccinated or boosted, or had repeat COVID-19 infections, had a similar reduction in the risk of developing long COVID, the study found.
Past studies have shown that Paxlovid reduces the risks of hospitalization and death from COVID-19."Since the trigger of long COVID is acute infection with SARS-CoV-2, it makes intuitive sense that anything that lowers the severity of this infection would reduce the risk of long COVID, whether it's Paxlovid or other antiviral treatments,"A starting point
Both Sax and Gandhi say they would feel more confident in the results if they were replicated in additional studies, especially inthat compare long COVID outcomes in patients who took either Paxlovid or a placebo. The VA study's findings are also limited by the fact that the participants were predominantly white men, raising the possibility that the benefits of Paxlovid could be different in other groups of patients.
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