PANORAMIC trial
The PANORAMIC trial is a clinical trial in the United Kingdom testing the effectiveness of new antiviral drugs at the early stages of COVID-19 infections. The study aims to find out if antivirals can prevent death and hospitalisation and help faster recovery for people aged over 50 and those at higher risk due to underlying health conditions. The trial was launched in December 2021, and had nearly 30,000 people enrolled as participants.
Overview
PANORAMIC is a platform trial that compares groups who are having symptoms of COVID: one receives standard care and others receive standard care plus antiviral treatment. Participants take part from home online or via phone and the antivirals are delivered to them.Participants
People could enroll in the study if they had symptoms of COVID less than 5 days prior to enrolling. They had to be either aged 50 or over, or have a preexisting health condition.Treatments
The antivirals tested in the study were molnupiravir and nirmatrelvir/ritonavir.Results
Molnupiravir
Results from the trial showed that for higher risk, vaccinated adults molnupiravir does not reduce the chances of hospitalisation and death. However molnupiravir was found to help people recover four days sooner and reduces the amount of virus in the body. Participants receiving molnupiravir reported feeling better in comparison to those who received usual care.Even though molnupiravir reduced the amount of virus after a 5-day treatment, the virus was still present and infectious in some of the participants. Furthermore those taking the medicine had fewer antibodies compared to those who did not which is a potential issue for boosting immunity.
After a 6-month follow-up, the PANORAMIC study showed that people who took the antiviral molnupiravir felt better, had fewer and less severe COVID-19 symptoms, took less time off and needed healthcare services less compared to those who received standard care. However, differences between the two groups were small and were evident only if a large number of people received molnupiravir.