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Saudi Arabia approves dexamethasone as coronavirus treatment

The kingdom's Ministry of Health has begun using the cheap drug on critically ill patients.
An ampoule of Dexamethasone is seen during the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in this picture illustration taken June 17, 2020. REUTERS/Yves Herman/Illustration - RC23BH9ZVDAF

Saudi Arabia has approved dexamethasone to treat critically ill coronavirus patients following a promising study on the drug in the United Kingdom, the kingdom’s state-run news reported Wednesday. 

A trial run by the University of Oxford found that the drug, a low-dose steroid used to treat inflammation, reduced the death rate among COVID-19 patients on ventilators by about 35%. The researchers estimate 5,000 lives could have been spared had the UK used the drug at the start of its outbreak. 

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