ABSTRACT
Introduction Treatment with dexamethasone reduces mortality in patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pneumonia requiring supplemental oxygen, but the optimal dose has not been determined. Objective To determine whether weight-based dexamethasone of 0.2 mg/kg is superior to 6 mg daily in reducing 28-day mortality in patients with COVID-19 and hypoxemia. Materials and methods A multicenter, open-label, randomized clinical trial was conducted between March 2021 and December 2021 at seven hospitals within Northwell Health. A total of 142 patients with confirmed COVID-19 and hypoxemia were included. Participants were randomized in a 1:1 ratio to dexamethasone 0.2 mg/kg intravenously daily (n = 70) or 6 mg daily (n = 72) for up to 10 days. Results There was no statistically significant difference in the primary outcome of 28-day all-cause mortality with deaths in 12 of 70 patients (17.14%) in the intervention group and 15 of 72 patients (20.83%) in the control group (p = 0.58). There were no statistically significant differences among the secondary outcomes. Conclusion In patients with COVID-19 and hypoxemia, the use of weight-based dexamethasone dosing was not superior to dexamethasone 6 mg in reducing all-cause mortality at 28 days. Clinical trial registration This study was registered under ClinicalTrials.gov (identifier: NCT04834375).
ABSTRACT
As we are over a year into the COVID-19 pandemic, we have made many forward strides in therapeutics. These treatments, such as monoclonal antibodies, have help mitigate the detrimental and often fatal consequences of COVID-19. The current indication for the use of monoclonal antibodies is mild to moderate COVID-19 infection within 10 days of symptom onset in those who are at high risk of progression to severe disease. However, their role in patients with prolonged symptoms is not clear. We present a unique case of monoclonal antibodies use after 54 days of symptom onset in an immunosuppressed patient with persistent COVID-19 infection despite standard treatment. This case illustrates the potential use of monoclonal antibodies outside of the current recommended therapeutic window in immunosuppressed patients, who may have difficulty with viral clearance.