Japan has approved the use of antiviral drug Remdesivir as a treatment for Covid-19, a week after the US allowed the emergency use of the same drug.

The drug, manufactured by pharmaceutical company Gilead, was originally developed to treat Ebola.

But Gilead says the drug has improved outcomes for people suffering from Covid-19, adding that at least 50% of patients treated with the medicine were discharged from the hospital within two weeks.

There is no concrete proof as of yet that Remdesivir is effective in treating the virus but interest in the drug continues to rise across the world.

BBC