NIH to Test Remdesivir With Eli Lilly’s Olumiant for COVID-19

The National Institutes of Health is sponsoring a clinical trial of Gilead Sciences’ antiviral remdesivir combined with Eli Lilly’s anti-inflammatory Olumiant (baricitinib) for treatment of COVID-19 infections.

The trial is the next step in the adaptive COVID-19 treatment trial that reported positive results from remdesivir treatment alone. The new trial will evaluate whether adding baricitinib shortens the recovery time.

For the new study, patients will be randomized to receive either Olumiant or a placebo in addition to remdesivir.

Investigators expect to enroll approximately 1,000 patients at 100 sites in the U.S. and around the world. The study will not include COVID patients with only mild symptoms or no apparent symptoms.

Olumiant is approved in the U.S. and 65 other countries as a treatment for moderate to severely active rheumatoid arthritis. The drug’s benefit for COVID-19 patients was seen in a series of critically ill patients who recovered from the virus.

The FDA granted remdesivir an Emergency Use Authorization on May 1 based on the results of the initial trial (DID, May 4). — Jordan Williams