Eli Lilly's drug baricitinib, sold under the brand name Olumiant, prevented 1 death for every 6 patients on a ventilator in a phase 3 clinical trial, the drugmaker said Aug. 3.
The trial, which included 101 adult patients, showed the drug resulted in a 46 percent risk reduction in mortality by day 28 of treatment.
Olumiant is commonly used to treat rheumatoid arthritis, as it combats inflammation. It was granted emergency use authorization in November for use in hospitalized COVID-19 patients who require supplemental oxygen or ventilation.
"As additional data from [the clinical trial] become available, it is increasingly evident that treatment with baricitinib may help prevent death in some of the most critically ill COVID-19 patients and that baricitinib represents an important treatment option for this vulnerable group of patients in this constantly evolving pandemic," E. Wesley Ely, MD, a professor at Vanderbilt University School of Medicine in Nashville who served as co-principal investigator for the trial, said in a news release.
Eli Lilly said it will publish detailed results from the trial in a peer-reviewed journal and present the findings at a medical meeting, but did not specify when.
Read the full news release here.