The Department of Science and Technology (DOST) is set to complete the clinical trials for the local herb, lagundi, and virgin coconut oil (VCO) in end-June and July, respectively, which are said to provide symptomatic relief for mild COVID-19 patients without comorbidities.
In a Laging Handa public briefing on Wednesday (June 30), the DOST Secretary Fortunato de la Peña said that data analysis for lagundi involved 278 participants in the clinical trial, while VCO aims to harvest 78 participants for its clinical trial.
He said that a mass production for lagundi products is already being conducted, since lagundi was already approved by the Food and Drug Administration as a cough remedy.
“May mass production na po. Ang lagundi po kasi ay approved ng FDA as a cough remedy, hindi nga lang nakalagay doon na iyan ay approved as a COVID-19 remedy. Kaya kung ito po ay magkakaroon ng magandang resulta, puwede nang idagdag doon sa kanilang indications na magagamit din sa COVID-19,” de la Peña said.
DOST also said the conduct of clinical trials for Ivermectin on its use for COVID-19 may last from six to eight months. – Report from Kenneth Paciente / CF-rir
