Results of the latest phase of an international clinical trial of the experimental antiviral drug remdesivir point to a shortened recovery time and reduced mortality rate for critically ill COVID-19 patients, according to officials at University Health System, which is conducting the world’s largest trial of the drug.

Local researchers are hoping use of the drug will help reduce hospital stays as remdesivir becomes more widely available. UT Health San Antonio, in partnership with UHS, wrapped up phase two of the global clinical trial at the end of June.

University Hospital is the lead enrollment site worldwide for the trial sponsored by the National Institutes of Health’s Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Nearly 200 patients have enrolled in the trial since April, when phase one began in Bexar County.

The trial is the first in the U.S. to evaluate an experimental treatment for COVID-19.