Merck - Ridgeback's COVID-19 Antiviral Shows Rapid Elimination Of Infectious SARS-CoV-2 Than Placebo - Merck & Co (NYSE:MRK)

Merck & Co Inc MRK and Ridgeback Biotherapeutics will present data evaluating Lagevrio (molnupiravir), an oral COVID-19 antiviral, at the 2022 European Congress of Clinical Microbiology & Infectious Diseases.
The presentation includes final analyses evaluating virologic outcomes throughout and following a five-day course of molnupiravir as part of the Phase 3 MOVe-OUT trial.
At Day 3 of treatment, among patients with the infectious virus at baseline, infectious SARS-CoV-2 was detected in 0.0% (n=0/92) of patients who received molnupiravir, compared with 21.8% (n=20/96) of patients who received placebo.
At Day 5, infectious virus was detected in 0.0% (n=0/91) of patients in the molnupiravir arm compared with 2.2% (n=2/89) in the placebo arm.
Related: WHO Conditionally Recommends Merck's COVID-19 Antiviral Pill For High-Risk Patients.
At Day 10, no infectious virus was detected in either arm for patients with the contagious virus at baseline.
Molnupiravir is being evaluated for post-exposure prophylaxis in the MOVe-AHEAD Phase 3 study evaluating the efficacy and safety of molnupiravir in preventing the spread of COVID-19 within households.
Price Action: MRK shares are up 0.55% at $82.50 during the market session on the last check Friday.