Kathmandu. The COVID-19 pandemic is turning a year next month, yet, despite continuous efforts, scientists know very little about this virus. A large number of drugs have already failed in fighting the Novel coronavirus.

Recently, a research conducted by the Sweden’s Karolinska Institute, led by the researchers at Imperial College London has discovered that a daily dose of an arthritis drug, called “baricitinib,” is likely to reduce the chances of mortality among elderly people by 71%.

According to the lead researcher, Professor Volker Lauschke, the performance of baricitinib against the virus is very impressive as it brings hope to the elderly people who are often considered to be a vulnerable population. 83 hospitalized elderly patients with COVID-19 pneumonia were treated with a daily dose of baricitinib, in addition to the standard care. Only 17 of them faced serious conditions.

Baricitinib, which is marketed under the brand name “Olumiant” is a recently developed drug for Rheumatoid Arthritis, launched a few years ago by the multinational, Eli Lilly and Company. Earlier in February, the British drug company BenevolentAI had claimed that Olumiant showed signs to fight with COVID-19.

Prior to the actual research, a study was conducted using the artificial intelligence (AI) technology, which indicated that baricitinib reduces the viral load of COVID-19, by reducing viral entry and inflammation on the lungs.