To date, Paxlovid’s rebound cases have been limited to small studies and experiences shared on social media.
Infectious disease experts have called on the government to study rebound cases more systematically, saying the phenomenon needs to be better characterized to understand who is most at risk and whether the standard 5-day treatment with the drug needs to be extended to prevent this. Additionally, specialists say, studies have shown that people can transmit the infection to others when rebounding, which is another reason to understand it better.
Fauci described the “interesting course” his own infection had taken on Tuesday during an appearance at Foreign Policy’s World Health Forum.
“I came back positive about two weeks ago, with very minimal symptoms. When they increased, considering my age, I took Paxlovid for five days,” Fauci said. Fauci, 81, credited the drug with keeping him from going to the hospital.
After five days of treatment, he tested negative. He had three consecutive days of negative tests. On the fourth day, he tested positive again.
“It was sort of what people call a Paxlovid rebound,” he said.
Pfizer, the company that makes Paxlovid, says its studies show that rebounds are rare and occur in people who take the drug as well as those who have taken a placebo pill. Because investigators noted the phenomenon in both groups, the company does not believe it is drug-related.
In Fauci’s case, he said his symptoms worsened when they returned from treatment.
“The next day I started to feel really bad, much worse than in the first round,” he said.
His doctors prescribed another course of Paxlovid.
“I took Paxlovid again, and right now I’m on my fourth day of a five-day course of my second course of Paxlovid. Fortunately, I feel reasonably well. I mean, I’m not completely without symptoms, but I don’t feel seriously ill. »
Dr. Michael Charness of the Boston VA Healthcare System has studied cases of Paxlovid rebound. He said Fauci’s case really illustrates how much we still need to learn about the drug.
“His clinical journey underscores how much more we need to know about the optimal dosage and duration of antiviral therapy for Omicron infections. We also know little about the best management of severe rebound infection,” Charness said in a write-up to CNN.
www.cnn.com
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