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Eli Lilly and Co. has played a key role in developing important medicines since its founding in 1876. Some of those drugs include penicillin, Prozac, Zyprexa and Humulin. Wochit

Eli Lilly and Company officials are asking the federal government to grant emergency approval to use a drug approved for rheumatoid arthritis to treat COVID-19, after a study showed it hastened recovery when used with another therapy.

The trial looked at the impact of adding baricitinib, marketed as Olumiant, to treatment with remdesivir, an antiviral. Patients who received both drugs recovered one day sooner than those who received remdesivir alone, the study of more than 1,000 hospitalized patients found.

Its quite a big outcome, said Patrik Jonsson, Lilly senior vice president and president of Lilly Bio-Medicines.

Those who received baricitinib along with remdesivir also required less clinical support while they were in the hospital and had better outcomes overall, Jonsson said.

While 24 hours may not seem like a dramatic difference, if hospitals are experiencing a surge in patients it can ease the strain on resources.

Eli Lilly officials said that while the results from the trial have not yet been peer-reviewed, they will be doing further analyses and expect to have more results soon.

Unlike remdesivir, which is an infusion, baricitinib is taken by mouth. Currently it is approved to treat rheumatoid arthritis. Jonsson said that if it was also approved for use in COVID-19, Lilly would be able to produce sufficient amounts for both conditions.

We are very confident that we are in a good position when it comes to supply, he said.

Rheumatoid arthritis patients take a 2-mg dose. Lilly plans to ask the FDA to approve a 4-mg dose for COVID-19. The drug currently comes with warnings about a risk of developing blood clots or infections.

Baricitinib is thought to help coronavirus patients by acting as an anti-inflammatory, Jonsson said. It is thought that the drug may lessen the effects of the so-called cytokine storm that the bodys own immune system may produce in response to the virus. It may also interfere with the viruss ability to reproduce, lowering the viral load.

Contact IndyStar reporter Shari Rudavsky at shari.rudavsky@indystar.com. Follow her on Facebook and on Twitter: @srudavsky.

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Lilly study shows its drug for rheumatoid arthritis helps in coronavirus treatment - IndyStar

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