Several Kenyan patients have volunteered for the clinical trial of COVID-19 treatment linked to pneumonia treatment.
Dr. Beatrice Nyawira, the Medical Director, Roche Kenya Ltd which is conducting the EMPACTA clinical trial said patients from public and private hospital were found eligible to take part in the trial going down at the Aga Khan University Hospital.
In a statement on Tuesday, Dr Nyawira said that: “The COVID-19 pandemic continues to evolve rapidly in Kenya and around the world and Roche is doing everything we can to contribute. Our people are working day and night with the aim of developing, manufacturing and supplying key tests and medicines where they are needed most. We are so glad to see Kenyan patients on the EMPACTA trial.”
Dr Reena Shah, Associate Professor of Medicine in Infectious Diseases, and the Principal Investigator of the study in Kenya said the clinical trial by Roche is a huge stride for Kenya.
“This is a watershed moment for Kenya and us at the Aga Khan University Hospital, Nairobi, that we can participate in an international clinical trial that is testing the effectiveness of this novel drug on our patients here,” Dr Shah said.
The trial commences as 397 new cases were recorded on Tuesday bringing the cumulative tall to 14,168.
A total of 3, 637 samples were tested. SO far, 249,998 samples have been tested.
Of the 397 new cases, eight of them are foreigners. 236 males and 161 females contracted the virus.
The youngest is one-year-old while the oldest is 90 years.
Further, 642 patients were discharged bringing the total number of recovered patients to 6,258. Of the new recoveries, 542 were under home-based care while 55 were in hospital.
Sadly, 12 patients succumbed to the virus bringing the death toll to 250.
The new cases encompass 12 doctors from Nyeri County who have tested positive for COVID-19.
