Companies hope people buy idea of ​​antibody treatments to prevent Covid

by



[ad_1]

However, the treatments are not as simple as swallowing a pill. A nurse wearing full protective gear should administer the treatment for about an hour and then monitor the patient for another.

Monoclonal treatments have many advantages. They work right away, unlike a vaccine that takes a few weeks to go into effect.

Plus, they won’t cost patients anything under an agreement between business and government, although there may be an administration fee.

The two companies released additional details on the results of the prevention trials on Tuesday, although they have yet to release the results.

Antibody treatments can protect retirement homes

During a call to shareholders on Tuesday, Lilly discussed what she called a “remarkable” prevention trial she’s performed with patients and nursing home staff.

Lilly has set up on-site infusion centers in nursing homes that had reported a recent case of Covid-19. The company infused 965 people who tested negative for the coronavirus and 132 who tested positive.

Half of the volunteers received the treatment, called LY-CoV555 or bamlanivimab, while the other group received a placebo, which does nothing.

Gorilla at San Diego Zoo receives monoclonal antibody treatment after being infected with Covid-19
After eight weeks, trial results showed that residents and staff who received the treatment had an 80% lower risk of testing positive for Covid-19 than people at the same facility who received a placebo.

During the trial, 16 residents died, some of them from Covid-19. None of the staff did. Eleven of those who died were in the group that received the placebo, compared with five who received the antibody treatment.

What to do and what not to do before and after your Covid vaccine injection
“Bamlanivimab can play a vital role in turning the tide of this pandemic,” said Lilly’s scientific director Dr Daniel Skovronsky. He said he believed it could help the country’s most vulnerable demographic groups. Nursing homes have had high rates of infection and accounted for 40% of Covid-related deaths in the United States, according to a January study.

Antibody treatments can protect against infections at home

Regeneron tested its antibody treatment as a way to protect those vulnerable to infection after someone in their own home tested positive.

Among 400 volunteers, half received the therapy and the other half received a placebo. The number of infections was lower among those who received the treatment, the company said on Tuesday.

Among the volunteers who received the treatment, those who became ill experienced symptoms that did not last more than a week, while 40% of people in the placebo group who were infected were sick for three to four weeks. .

None of those who were infected and received the treatment had a high viral load, while 62% of those in the placebo group who were infected had a high viral load.

One person who received a placebo died. There were no deaths or hospitalizations in the group that received the treatment.

Other vaccines could arrive soon and they could be a big boost for the rollout

Where antibodies fit into a world with vaccines

Eli Lilly and Regeneron argue their treatments may play an important role in the pandemic, even as more people are getting vaccinated.

“These data using REGEN-COV as a passive vaccine suggest that it may both reduce the transmission of the virus and reduce the viral and disease burden in those who are still infected”, Dr. George Yancopoulos, President and Scientific Director of Regeneron, said in a press release.

“Even with the emerging availability of active vaccines, we continue to see hundreds of thousands of people infected daily, actively spreading the virus to their close contacts. The REGEN-COV antibody cocktail can help break this chain by providing immediate passive immunity to those at high risk of infection, unlike active vaccines which take weeks to provide protection, ”said Yancopoulos.

Skovronsky de Lilly said there was “variable use of vaccination” in nursing homes. In some cases, less than 50% want to be vaccinated.

“There are deaths every day at these facilities and that motivates us to be aggressive in prophylaxis, where we believe we can have a rapid impact during this sort of uncertain mixed vaccination period,” Skovronsky said.

Doctors test popular antidepressant to see if it fights Covid-19

Skovronsky also believes there may come a day when vaccines may not fully protect against newer variants of Covid-19.

“This probably informs our thinking about next generation antibodies and the need to stay ahead of it,” Skovronsky said.

Lilly is testing bamlanivimab against new variants of the virus. Regeneron’s tests on two different variants of the coronavirus show that one of the two monoclonal antibodies in its cocktail therapy can neutralize both, despite the mutations.

If approved, how do people get these treatments?

So far, the United States has been slow to adopt antibody treatments. The Department of Health and Human Services told CNN last week that of the antibody treatments sent, on average only 39% were actually used.

It is not known whether more people will use treatment that can protect them against the disease. It is also unclear whether the FDA will allow monoclonal drugs for this type of use. If they get emergency use authorization, the companies said they have laid the groundwork and taken steps to educate people about these treatments and encourage more people to use them.

Eli Lilly said he has set up a 24-hour helpline and that there are now a number of websites, including Covid.infusioncenter.org, that can help people find infusion centers at proximity.

Some states have also tried to be more proactive. Contact tracers have been encouraged to mention them when letting someone know that they have recently been exposed to Covid-19.

Some hospitals have also tried to be proactive, using electronic records to quickly get in touch and offer treatment as soon as they test positive. If the FDA allows the preventative use of these treatments, the systems can still adapt to contact a person as soon as they have been tested, regardless of the outcome.

Regeneron said that if its treatment is allowed as a preventative measure, a doctor could still prescribe it for the person being treated and their household.

Eli Lilly said if people really want these treatments, they may have to apply for them directly.

“I think patients and providers, in some cases, have to be persistent in navigating our health care system, as unfortunately is often the case with different illnesses, to get optimal treatment,” Skovronsky said. “But for patients who want it and qualify, and providers who think it’s good for their patients, it’s widely available.”

[ad_2]

Source link