tetano
Editor, Senior Moderator
Expert Rev Anti Infect Ther
. 2020 Jul 22.
doi: 10.1080/14787210.2020.1800453. Online ahead of print.
Tocilizumab for patients with severe COVID-19: a retrospective, multi-centre study
Krzysztof Tomasiewicz[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Anna Piekarska[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Justyna Stempkowska-Rejek[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Sylwia Serafińska[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Aleksandra Gawkowska[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Miłosz Parczewski[SUP] 4 [/SUP], Jolanta Niścigorska-Olsen[SUP] 4 [/SUP], Tadeusz W Łapiński[SUP] 5 [/SUP], Dorota Zarębska-Michaluk[SUP] 6 [/SUP], Justyna D Kowalska[SUP] 7 [/SUP], Andrzej Horban[SUP] 7 [/SUP], Robert Flisiak[SUP] 5 [/SUP]
Affiliations
Abstract
Background: Tocilizumab, an inhibitor of the interleukin-6 receptor, may decrease the inflammatory response and control the symptoms of severe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), but the evidence is scarce.
Methods: This retrospective study included patients with severe COVID-19 requiring oxygen therapy who received tocilizumab in seven centers across Poland. We assessed on-treatment changes in clinical status and inflammatory markers.
Results: Twenty-eight patients were included (19 male), with a mean age of 61.7?12.4 years. The mean time from symptom onset to the first tocilizumab dose was 10.5 ? 5.7 days. Clinical status improved within 24 hours in 11 (39%) patients, within one week in 23 (82%) patients, and within two weeks in 25 (89%); one (4%) patient showed no change and two (7%) patients died. Sixteen patients (57%) no longer needed oxygen therapy within a week (p <0.001). The serum concentrations of C-reactive protein, procalcitonin, and fibrinogen decreased significantly (p ≤0.001). Lung changes improved in 21 (84%) patients within two weeks of treatment; 19 had minimal or no changes upon final examination.
Conclusions: Tocilizumab can control the symptoms of severe COVID-19 by reducing the inflammatory response and rapidly improves the clinical status in most patients.
Keywords: COVID-19; SARS-CoV-2; interleukin-6; therapy; tocilizumab.
. 2020 Jul 22.
doi: 10.1080/14787210.2020.1800453. Online ahead of print.
Tocilizumab for patients with severe COVID-19: a retrospective, multi-centre study
Krzysztof Tomasiewicz[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Anna Piekarska[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Justyna Stempkowska-Rejek[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Sylwia Serafińska[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Aleksandra Gawkowska[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Miłosz Parczewski[SUP] 4 [/SUP], Jolanta Niścigorska-Olsen[SUP] 4 [/SUP], Tadeusz W Łapiński[SUP] 5 [/SUP], Dorota Zarębska-Michaluk[SUP] 6 [/SUP], Justyna D Kowalska[SUP] 7 [/SUP], Andrzej Horban[SUP] 7 [/SUP], Robert Flisiak[SUP] 5 [/SUP]
Affiliations
- PMID: 32693650
- DOI: 10.1080/14787210.2020.1800453
Abstract
Background: Tocilizumab, an inhibitor of the interleukin-6 receptor, may decrease the inflammatory response and control the symptoms of severe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), but the evidence is scarce.
Methods: This retrospective study included patients with severe COVID-19 requiring oxygen therapy who received tocilizumab in seven centers across Poland. We assessed on-treatment changes in clinical status and inflammatory markers.
Results: Twenty-eight patients were included (19 male), with a mean age of 61.7?12.4 years. The mean time from symptom onset to the first tocilizumab dose was 10.5 ? 5.7 days. Clinical status improved within 24 hours in 11 (39%) patients, within one week in 23 (82%) patients, and within two weeks in 25 (89%); one (4%) patient showed no change and two (7%) patients died. Sixteen patients (57%) no longer needed oxygen therapy within a week (p <0.001). The serum concentrations of C-reactive protein, procalcitonin, and fibrinogen decreased significantly (p ≤0.001). Lung changes improved in 21 (84%) patients within two weeks of treatment; 19 had minimal or no changes upon final examination.
Conclusions: Tocilizumab can control the symptoms of severe COVID-19 by reducing the inflammatory response and rapidly improves the clinical status in most patients.
Keywords: COVID-19; SARS-CoV-2; interleukin-6; therapy; tocilizumab.