In the trials, the risk of death decreased by one-third for patients in need of a respirator. In the patient group who need oxygen, the death rate decreased by one fifth. Dexamethasone does not seem to help people with milder coronary symptoms but only those who need help with breathing. The drug has been given in small doses. This is reported by the BBC.

More than 2,000 severely ill covid-19 patients were included in the study, along with a control group of 4,000 patients who did not participate in the treatment.

- This is the only drug to date that has been shown to reduce mortality - and also significantly. It's a big breakthrough, "Peter Horby, chief investigator and professor at Oxford University, told the BBC.

A review of existing drugs

Dexamethasone is being tested as part of the Recovery project, which is one of the world's largest efforts to identify existing drugs that can be used in the treatment of patients with covid-19 disease. It is also a cheap and accessible drug.

British health minister Matt Hancock announces in a video-recorded statement that medical care should begin treating covid-19 patients with dexamethasone immediately. The United Kingdom began hoarding dexamethasone three months ago when the first indications came that the drug was working as a treatment for the disease, and now has 200,000 treatments to use, according to Hancock.

The medicine is used in inflammation

In the Swedish drug compilation FASS, it says that dexamethasone belongs to a group of drugs called corticosteroids, ie cortisone, and is used mainly in emergency care for the treatment of inflammation and certain allergic reactions.

Dexamethasone is also used in the treatment of, for example, inflammation associated with cancer diseases and to counteract vomiting in the treatment of cytostatic drugs. Dexamethasone is used in brain swelling caused by brain tumor.