Eli Lilly and Co said on Monday its rheumatoid arthritis drug shortened the time to recovery in hospitalised Covid-19 patients when used along with Gilead Sciences Inc’s remdesivir.

The drug baricitinib, branded as Olumiant, cut the median recovery time by about a day when added to remdesivir, compared to patients treated with the antiviral alone, Lilly said.

Remdesivir was granted an emergency use authorisation (EUA) in May after trial data showed it helped shorten hospital recovery time by 31 per cent.

Lilly said it plans to discuss the potential for an EAU for baricitinib with the US Food and Drug Administration, based on the results from the trial, which tested more than 1,000 patients.