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Outcomes of COVID-19 among patients treated with subcutaneous interferon beta-1a for multiple sclerosis.
Freedman, Mark S; Jack, Dominic; Murgasová, Zuzana; Todorovic, Milorad; Seitzinger, Andrea.
  • Freedman MS; University of Ottawa, Department of Medicine and the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, ON, Canada. Electronic address: mfreedman@toh.ca.
  • Jack D; Merck Serono Ltd, Feltham, UK (an affiliate of Merck KGaA).
  • Murgasová Z; Merck spol. s r.o., Bratislava, Slovakia (an affiliate of Merck KGaA).
  • Todorovic M; Merck Healthcare KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany.
  • Seitzinger A; Merck Healthcare KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany.
Mult Scler Relat Disord ; 56: 103283, 2021 Nov.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-1440269
ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND:

In accordance with expert guidance, patients have typically continued to receive treatment with subcutaneous interferon beta-1a (sc IFN ß-1a) for relapsing multiple sclerosis (MS) during the COVID-19 pandemic.

METHODS:

We provide a summary of outcomes among sc IFN ß-1a-treated patients with adverse events related to confirmed or suspected COVID-19, as reported to the Merck Global Patient Safety Database (as of 2 February 2021). Serious COVID-19-related adverse events (as classified by the reporting clinician) included those leading to hospitalization, admission to intensive care, or death. Outcomes were classified per usual pharmacovigilance practice.

RESULTS:

The evaluable cohort comprised 603 patients of median age 43 (range, 13-84) years and 75.1% were female. COVID-19 was experienced at a median of 33.0 (range, 0-321.8) months after start of treatment with sc IFN ß-1a. A total of 136 (22.6%) patients experienced serious COVID-19 events, including 59 hospitalizations (4 patients admitted to intensive care) and 5 deaths (fatality rate, 0.8%). Regarding non-fatal outcomes, 47.8% of patients (289/603) with COVID-19 adverse events were recovered or recovering at time of analysis; similar findings were apparent for the serious and hospitalized cohorts.

CONCLUSION:

Findings of this analysis from the Merck Global Patient Safety Database suggest that, compared with available statistics for the general population and those with MS, patients receiving sc IFN ß-1a for treatment of relapsing MS have relatively low rates of serious disease and/or severe outcomes with COVID-19.
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Full text: Available Collection: International databases Database: MEDLINE Main subject: Multiple Sclerosis, Relapsing-Remitting / COVID-19 / Multiple Sclerosis Type of study: Cohort study / Observational study / Prognostic study Limits: Adult / Female / Humans Language: English Journal: Mult Scler Relat Disord Year: 2021 Document Type: Article

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Full text: Available Collection: International databases Database: MEDLINE Main subject: Multiple Sclerosis, Relapsing-Remitting / COVID-19 / Multiple Sclerosis Type of study: Cohort study / Observational study / Prognostic study Limits: Adult / Female / Humans Language: English Journal: Mult Scler Relat Disord Year: 2021 Document Type: Article