Unlocking the Secrets of Chronic Illness

Investigational Combination Antiviral Therapies, Beginning with Long COVID

PridCor is applying insights from the pandemic response to develop and test combination antiviral regimens for post-viral syndromes, conditions that have no approved treatments today.

Our Mission

At PridCor Therapeutics, our mission is inspired by the legendary Gordian Knot, a seemingly impossible puzzle symbolizing humanity’s most complex medical challenges. Much like the Gordian Knot, conditions such as Long COVID, Fibromyalgia, ME/CFS, and IBS have resisted understanding and effective treatment, leaving countless lives disrupted.

Driven by relentless curiosity and groundbreaking science, PridCor is committed to unraveling these intricate mysteries. Our logo represents our commitment: to pursue the biology behind post-viral syndromes with rigorous science, and to test what we find in controlled clinical trials.

Together, we are working to bring rigorous, controlled evidence to a category that has had almost none.

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About PridCor Therapeutics

Pharmaceutical companies and academic research centers have long struggled with expensive, time-consuming, single-agent clinical trials that frequently fail to unravel complex chronic ailments such as Fibromyalgia, ME/CFS, IBS, and now Long COVID. These traditional approaches have fallen short of addressing the true underlying causes of these persistent conditions, leaving millions without effective treatment or hope.

Founded by Dr. William Pridgen, a distinguished physician, researcher, and surgeon with over 35 years of medical innovation and clinical experience, PridCor Therapeutics was established to challenge the status quo. Throughout his career, Dr. Pridgen has pursued new treatment approaches for complex illnesses largely overlooked by conventional markets, seeking practical answers to real barriers in healthcare delivery.

Leveraging this deep clinical insight and decades of dedicated research, PridCor Therapeutics is developing investigational combination regimens designed to address proposed biological drivers of post-viral syndromes. The same approach may prove relevant to other complex conditions including Fibromyalgia, ME/CFS, and IBS. Each application will require its own clinical evaluation.”

At PridCor Therapeutics, we are committed to generating the controlled clinical evidence this category has lacked, so that patients and physicians can eventually make decisions based on data rather than hope.”

Why Now?

SARS-CoV-2 triggered the most devastating pandemic in over a century
Creating a widespread post-viral syndrome characterized by severe systemic and immune alterations. An estimated 400 million people worldwide have been affected by Long COVID on a cumulative basis, with an estimated annual economic impact of approximately $1 trillion (Al-Aly Z, et al. Nature Medicine. 2024;30(8):2148-2164).
This surge in Long COVID cases has rapidly emerged as the next global health crisis
Prompting unprecedented action from governments and medical communities. Congress appropriated $1.15 billion to the National Institutes of Health in December 2020, with a further $662 million in 2024, underscoring a clear commitment to solving this urgent health challenge.
Recognizing this pivotal moment
PridCor Therapeutics is collaborating with researchers at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai on the SHIELD Study, a randomized, quadruple-masked, placebo-controlled Phase 2 study registered as NCT07597902. The study is designed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of the combination regimen in approximately 150 adults with Long COVID. It is not yet enrolling.

“Traditionally, medical research advances slowly, in small, incremental steps—science often progresses one funeral at a time. At PridCor Therapeutics, we see the Gordian Knot not just as legend, but as an urgent call for radical change. Our bold new philosophy challenges future biotech companies to pursue groundbreaking leaps forward rather than incremental progress.”

Advancing Care through Specialized Treatments and Medical Technologies

Discover Our Innovative Therapeutic Solutions

Post-Viral Syndromes

Beginning with Long COVID

Our lead investigational candidate combines valacyclovir, celecoxib, and a pulsed course of nirmatrelvir/ritonavir. It has not been approved by the FDA, and its safety and efficacy have not been established. It’s designed to suppress latent viral reactivation and reduce inflammation—two potential drivers of Long COVID.

Proprietary Throat Spray

PCT-1, an investigational throat spray for pharyngitis and oral mucositis

Our proprietary PCT-1 throat spray addresses critical unmet needs in pharyngitis treatment. Ideal for general throat pain and invaluable for cancer patients experiencing oral mucositis due to head and neck radiation therapy, PCT-1 is designed to adhere to the posterior pharynx and to continue delivering medication after repeated swallowing

PCT Trocar Lock

Innovative, Customized 3D-Printed Medical Device

PridCor’s PCT Trocar Lock Our custom-designed, 3D-printed device is a device intended to stabilize trocars during surgery.

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Our Long COVID Research

At PridCor Therapeutics, is developing investigational combination regimens designed to address proposed biological drivers of post-viral syndromes, beginning with Long COVID. Our lead therapy known as The PridCor Protocol combines valacyclovir, celecoxib, and nirmatrelvir/ritonavir. It is designed to address viral reactivation and inflammation, two proposed drivers of Long COVID.

At PridCor Therapeutics, Our proprietary throat spray, PCT-1, uniquely adheres to the posterior pharynx, consistently delivering therapeutic medication—even after repeated swallows. Ideal for routine cases of pharyngitis and invaluable for cancer patients suffering from oral mucositis during head and neck radiation therapy, PCT-1 represents a first-of-its-kind advancement in therapeutic throat care.

Precision in Robotic Surgery Begins Here

At PridCor Therapeutics, we’re eliminating common frustrations associated with robotic, laparoscopic, and minimally invasive procedures. Traditional trocars can slip deeper into the abdomen, impairing visualization and restricting surgical instrument movement—prolonging surgery and increasing surgeon frustration. Our proprietary, custom-designed PCT Trocar Lock attachment prevents trocar slippage, enabling smoother, more efficient, and precise surgical operations.

Leadership Rooted in Clinical Experience and Scientific Vision

Meet Our Founder

Dr. William “Skip” Pridgen, MD

Co-Founder & Chief Executive Officer
Tuscaloosa, Alabama

Successfully Founded Virios Therapeutics now trading as Dogwood Therapeutics on the NASDAQ.

Dr. Pridgen is a board-certified surgeon and the originator of the PridCor Protocol, a novel therapy based on a fixed dose of valacyclovir, celecoxib, and a third element, developed to address the biological underpinnings of Long COVID. With more than 20 years of clinical experience, he brings a unique perspective to pharmaceutical innovation—where real-world patient insight meets rigorous science.

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Testimonials

Real People. Real Hope. Real Momentum.

Patient 1 - Best-Selling Author

I haven’t felt this good in years! Being treated by Dr. Pridgen has helped me finally get the rest I so desperately needed and I no longer hurt when I wake up. The energy I now have I could not have even imagined before.  .

Patient 2 - A Physician

Improvement. Day over day at a fundamental level that’s what we are looking for as physicians in all of our practices. I am very grateful for meeting and being treated by Dr. Pridgen for my symptoms. Even the crappy days are better than they ever.

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Press Releases

April 23, 2026

April 23, 2026 12:14 ET  | Source: PridCor Therapeutics, LLC TUSCALOOSA, Ala., April 23, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — PridCor Therapeutics LLC, a...

January 6, 2026

TUSCALOOSA, Ala., Jan. 06, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — PridCor Therapeutics, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing antiviral therapies for infection-associated chronic illnesses...

September 23, 2025

TUSCALOOSA, Ala., Sept. 23, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — PridCor Therapeutics today announced that Dr. David Putrino, principal investigator of the...

September 4, 2025

September 04, 2025 10:32 ET | Source: GlobalNewsWire-New Preprint: PridCor Therapeutics LLC has released a pre-print detailing a case series of 15 patients...

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