Chong Kun Dang headquarters located in Chungjeong-ro, Seodaemun-gu, Seoul. [사진 종근당]
– Chong Kun Dang announced on the 14th that the effectiveness of the new coronavirus infection (Corona 19) treatment (‘Napabeltan’) that it is developing has been proven. Compared to Celltrion’s Corona 19 treatment’Rekirona’, which was announced the day before, it was effective in treating corona 19 patients in a more severe situation.
Chong Kun Dang said in a press release that day, “Napa Veltan has excellent treatment effects for high-risk patients.” Corona 19 patients are divided into ▶’mild’ patients who do not require hospitalization ▶’moderate’ patients who need oxygen mask treatment ▶’severe’ patients who need intensive care unit (ICU) treatment or equipped with a ventilator. Among severely ill patients, if the index (early warning score, NEWS) predicting the fatality of pneumonia patients due to COVID-19 is 7 or more, the probability of death increases 18 times, and is classified as a’high risk group’.
When Chong Kun Dang administered Napabeltan for 10 days to 36 confirmed patients with COVID-19, classified as high-risk in Phase 2 clinical trials in Russia, 61.1% of patients improved their symptoms. This is 50 percentage points higher than the symptom improvement rate (11.1%) of corona19 confirmed patients who did not take Napabeltan.
61% of patients at high risk of COVID-19 improved
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![Chong Kun Dang's acute pancreatitis drug Napabeltan was also effective in treating COVID-19 patients. [사진 종근당]](https://i0.wp.com/pds.joins.com/news/component/htmlphoto_mmdata/202101/14/d5cddd0e-e4e3-47bf-8e67-d5afa9bc2043.jpg?w=900&ssl=1)
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Chong Kun Dang’s acute pancreatitis drug Napabeltan was also effective in treating COVID-19 patients. [사진 종근당]
– In addition, after 28 days of napaveltan administration, 94 out of 100 patients improved (94.4%). In the case of not taking Napaveltan during the same period, only 61.1% of patients improved symptoms of Corona 19.
Regarding this, Chong Kun Dang said, “The results of experiments on patients with high risk of COVID-19 during a total of 28 days of clinical trials were considered, and the variables of each group were statistically calculated by considering and excluding various variables. Napabeltan proved to be 2.9 times more effective in treatment compared to the case where it was not administered.”
In particular, four of the corona19 patients who did not take Napa Beltan died, but none of the patients who took Napa Beltan died. With this, Chong Kun Dang evaluated that “Napabeltan has presented the possibility as a drug that prevents the death of patients with high risk of Corona 19.”
Celltrion is for mild, Chong Kun Dang is for severe patients
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![Young-joo Kim, CEO of Jong Geun-dang. [사진 종근당]](https://i0.wp.com/pds.joins.com/news/component/htmlphoto_mmdata/202101/14/692be316-6e02-494c-a966-fd99245f9edf.jpg?w=900&ssl=1)
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Young-joo Kim, CEO of Jong Geun-dang. [사진 종근당]
– On the other hand, Celltrion’s release on the 13th was effective for mild and moderate patients with relatively mild symptoms. In the case of moderately ill patients with pneumonia or over 50 years of age, the treatment period was shortened by up to 6.4 days, but clinical trials were not conducted for severely ill patients.
If Rekirona is an antibody treatment, Napabeltan is a drug reinvention treatment for COVID-19. Compared to an antibody treatment that selects the antibody that responds best to the virus and produces it in a cell culture method, a drug re-creation treatment that verifies whether an existing drug responds to the Corona 19 virus has the advantage of being inexpensive.
Celltrion chairman Seo Jeong-jin said in November last year that he would set the price of Rekirona at about 400,000 won. Napabeltan, currently used as a blood anticoagulant and a cure for acute pancreatitis, costs 9748 won per vial (a glass container for storage).
Chong Kun Dang said, “In the absence of COVID-19 treatments for high-risk patients, Napa Beltan will be an important alternative to treat COVID-19 patients.” “I will apply for conditional permits within,” he said.
Reporter Moon Hee-cheol [email protected]
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