US FDA approves 1st Covid-19 treatment for young children

Los Angeles, April 26 The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has expanded its approval of the Covid-19 treatment Veklury, also known as Remdesivir, to include pediatric patients 28 days of age and older weighing at least 3 kilograms who are infected by SARS-CoV-2.

This action makes Veklury the first approved Covid-19 treatment for children less than 12 years of age, said the FDA.

Veklury is approved for young children who are hospitalised, or have mild-to-moderate Covid-19 and are at high risk for progression to severe Covid-19, according to the FDA.

Previously Veklury was only approved to treat Covid19 for certain adults and pediatric patients 12 years of age and older who weigh at least 40 kilograms, Xinhua news agency reported.

"As Covid-19 can cause severe illness in children, some of whom do not currently have a vaccination option, there continues to be a need for safe and effective Covid-19 treatment options for this population," said Patrizia Cavazzoni, Director of the FDA's Center for Drug Evaluation and Research.