Health minister Zweli Mkhize on Friday said SA is in a favourable position when it comes to supply of dexamethasone.
n treating the coronavirus. The drug is also manufactured in SA.
“Our health care workers are very familiar with dexamethasone, having used it for decades as a registered medicine in SA. We are immediately able to offer all patients that need intravenous dexamethasone. We have checked our stock and we currently have around 300,000 ampoules in the country,” he added.“One of the companies manufactures the oral equivalent and supplies it all over the world and so we are able to negotiate the security of our own supply right here at home.
In patients that have the coronavirus, “dexamethasone was found to reduce mortality by one third in patients who required ventilatory support and by one fifth in patients who required non-invasive supplementary oxygen”.However, the drug was not beneficial for Covid-19 positive patients who were not in need of oxygen or ventilators. It was also not recommended for asymptomatic patients.
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