Covid treatments: Over-the-counter, prescription and in-hospital

While Covid-19 vaccines remain the best protection against the novel virus, if you do catch Covid there are also several treatments to help manage symptoms, like Covid cough, and prevent hospitalization. Onisis Stefas, PharmD, executive director of VIVO Health, breaks down what treatments are available over the counter, by prescription (paxlovid and molnupiravir) and if you do end up in the hospital (remdesivir). He explains the difference between the types of medications (anti-viral vs monoclonal antibodies) and which remain effective today against the new Covid variants.

Podcast transcript

Chapters:

• 00:07 - Intro
  02:08 - A personal experience with paxlovid
  05:26 - Covid treatments for mild-to-moderate Covid-19
  08:13 - Categories of Covid treatments
  10:05 - Paxlovid effectiveness
  10:24 - Molnupiravir vs paxlovid
  11:22 - When should you take paxlovid
  12:05 - Remdesivir infusion
  12:57 - Covid anti-viral medication vs monoclonal antibodies
  14:11 - Paxlovid, molnupiravir, remdesivir work against new Covid variants
  14:47 - Why paxlovid usage is low
  16:39 - Outro

Listen to more from Dr. Stefas on 20-Minute Health Talk:

• When hospitals close: How to address "care deserts" - March 15, 2022
• Breaking down the Johnson & Johnson Covid-19 vaccine - March 5, 2021
• What's in the Covid-19 vaccine? - Jan. 13, 2021

Watch episodes of 20-Minute Health Talk on YouTube.

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