There has been a profusion of trials for SARS CoV2 drugs. A review dating from May 2020 listed 115 medicines, most of which previously existed, having been investigated since the onset of the pandemic. Over an exceedingly short lapse of time, the perspective of the arrival of a new antiviral treatment specifically targeting COVID-19 appeared highly improbable.

Three years later, only one treatment is recommended in France: the nirmatrelvir + ritonavir combination. While remdesivir remains available, it is only proposed when this combination is officially contraindicated.

Three monoclonal antibodies, taken alone or in association, are currently available in France:: tixagevimab/cilgavimab, casirivimab/imdevimab and sotrovimab. While all three of them have received European market authorization for patients presenting with an increased risk of evolution toward a severe form of COVID-19, and while early access is possible, they are no longer recommended, the reason being a loss or alteration of activity on variants carrying a Spike protein mutation. RoActemra is a humanized monoclonal antibody that blocks the action of interleukin 6 receptors; it is exclusively reserved for adult patients receiving systemic corticotherapy and necessitating oxygen supplementation, while patients under invasive mechanical ventilation are excluded.

All in all, since the onset of the pandemic dozens of products have been subjected to tests or trials; three years later, only a highly limited number of “candidates” remain, and definitive assessment has yet to be achieved.