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<\/p>\nMajor Canadian and UK studies provide crucial evidence for targeting use of Paxlovid in today\u2019s highly vaccinated populations.<\/p>\n
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The COVID antiviral drug Paxlovid (nirmatrelvir-ritonavir) can help people recover faster, but does not reduce hospital admissions or deaths in vaccinated adults at higher risk of severe COVID-19, according to new results from two clinical trials.<\/p>\n
The findings, published in the New England Journal of Medicine<\/a>, provide crucial evidence for targeting Paxlovid to those who will benefit most, particularly as widespread vaccination has dramatically reduced the risk of severe outcomes.<\/p>\n \u201cThis study underscores the importance of continuously evaluating treatments in the context of an evolving pandemic,\u201d said co-investigator Dr. Srinivas Murthy<\/a>, clinical associate professor of pediatrics at the UBC Faculty of Medicine and investigator at BC Children\u2019s Hospital Research Institute. \u201cAs population immunity changes, so too must our approach to care. In the future, embedding clinical trials into public health responses will be key to identifying the most effective therapies.\u201d<\/p>\n The findings stem from two national clinical trials involving more than 4,200 participants. Dr. Murthy was the lead B.C. investigator on the Canadian CanTreatCOVID<\/a> trial led out of St. Michael\u2019s Hospital in Toronto, while the UK PANORAMIC<\/a> trial was led from the University of Oxford.<\/p>\n Both trials recruited adults aged 50 or over, or younger adults with additional conditions such as diabetes or asthma. Over 98 per cent of all participants were vaccinated.<\/p>\n By testing the drug in mostly vaccinated higher-risk patients, the trials reflect today\u2019s changed pandemic landscape.<\/p>\n \u201cIn today\u2019s highly vaccinated populations exposed to the Omicron variant, the benefits of Paxlovid have fundamentally changed,\u201d said Dr. Christopher Butler, a professor at the University of Oxford who led the UK trial. \u201cWhile people feel better sooner, we found no reduction in the already low rate of hospitalizations or deaths. This provides essential evidence for optimal, cost-effective targeting of this treatment.\u201d<\/p>\n Faster recovery in vaccinated patients<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Srinivas-Murthy.png\")
Dr. Srinivas Murthy<\/p>\n