Cardiac Adverse Events With Remdesivir in COVID-19 Infection

Gupta, Anupam K; Parker, Barbara M; Priyadarshi, Vikash; Parker, John

Since December 2019, coronavirus has gradually progressed to a pandemic with no efficacious treatment. Remdesivir is an antiviral medication and inhibitor of viral RNA dependent RNA polymerase with inhibitory action against SARS-CoV virus. Two patients diagnosed with coronavirus infection with worsening respiratory status were initiated with multimodality therapy with antibiotics, steroids and remdesivir. After initiation of remdesivir, the patients’ developed bradycardia, with one of the two also showing signs of worsening QT interval. This reverted upon stopping remdesvir therapy. The prevalence of bradycardia with prolonged QT interval is not well-known yet with this medication.