Infectious Disease Advisor Real-world use of nirmatrelvir-ritonavir was associated with substantially lower rates of COVID-19-related hospitalization among high-risk outpatients during the Omicron BA.2 and BA.4/BA.5 surges, according to study findings published in Clinical Infectious Diseases.
With earlier evidence for nirmatrelvir-ritonavir largely generated in unvaccinated populations infected with the Delta variant, updated data have been needed to evaluate its effectiveness against later Omicron subvariants and in populations with differing levels of vaccine-derived immunity. Researchers in Québec conducted a retrospective, population-based cohort study to evaluate whether outpatient treatment with nirmatrelvir-ritonavir reduces the risk for COVID-19-associated hospitalization in these contemporary, high-risk groups.