Nearly 100 San Antonio COVID-19 patients included in remdesivir study

SAN ANTONIO - Nearly 100 COVID-19 patients at University Hospital are participating in a study looking at the effectiveness of the drug remdesivir.

In the study, the drug has not only decreased recovery time but it's also reduced symptoms. Now, researchers are looking to see if it's also effective with an anti-inflammatory drug.

However, the government agreed to distribute remdesivir only to communities where there was a great need.

We spoke with Dr. Thomas Patterson, who's leading the remdesivir study. He said the drug will most likely be made available to the general public eventually but must be given by vein.

Paterson said 96 patients at university hospital are participating in this research, which is a huge contribution to the study.

"Many of these patients are persons of color, there are many Hispanics in the region, and so I think that's a major contribution whereas many trials don't include vulnerable populations in their numbers of enrollment," Dr. Patterson said.

Doctors will follow-up with patients through the end of the month and then researchers will know the results.