Soroka Medical Center will examine the effect of treatment with the drug pirfenidone also on long-term complications after recovery from the virus • "There is a good basis to think that the drug will be useful"
Dr. Uri Galante leads the research
Photo:
Rachel David-Soroka
Soroka Medical Center is conducting a unique study examining the efficacy of the drug pirfenidone in coronary heart disease patients.
The study is led by Dr. Uri Galanta, a senior physician in the Corona Intensive Care Unit, along with the Soroka Clinical Research Center.
Dr. Galante and the Soroka Clinical Research Center have received a research grant from the Chief Scientist, to conduct a study examining the drug's efficacy. From the virus.
Dr. Uri Galanta explains: “We decided to test the effect of this drug on severe corona patients who need intensive care and suffer from viral pneumonia secondary to corona.
Along with the inflammatory process occurs simultaneously a process of formation of lung scar tissue (fibrosis).
This process sometimes requires a long time to recover and there are patients in whom the lungs fail to recover at all. "
He added: "The aim of the study is to test whether early treatment with pirfenidone can slow, inhibit or accelerate recovery of diseased lungs, thereby improving the rate of recovery and artificial respiration of corona patients."
The patients who will participate in the study are randomly divided into two groups: an intervention group in which the patients receive the drug and a control group in which the patients do not receive the drug.
The study examines whether the drug improves the chances of survival of the severe patients in Corona who are currently very low.
The study will also examine whether the drug has enhanced the long-term effects after the corona on surviving patients.
Dr. Galante: "There is a good basis for thinking that the drug will be useful in treating the severe lung disease caused by the corona virus. In order to obtain solid and clear data, we will need to examine dozens of other patients in the study."