Thalidomide combined with short-term low-dose glucocorticoid therapy for the treatment of severe COVID-19: A case-series study.
Int J Infect Dis
; 103: 507-513, 2021 Feb.
Article
in English
| MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-974112
ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVES:
The aim was to evaluate the safety and effectiveness of thalidomide, an immunomodulatory agent, in combination with glucocorticoid, for the treatment of COVID-19 patients with life-threatening symptoms.METHODS:
A nonrandomized comparative case series study was performed. Six patients received thalidomide 100 mg per day (with therapy lasting for ≥7 days) plus low-dose short-term dexamethasone, and 6 control patients matched with patients in the thalidomide group, received low-dose short-term treatment with dexamethasone alone. The main outcomes were the duration of SARS-CoV-2 negative conversion from admission; length of hospital stay; and changes in inflammatory cytokine concentrations and lymphocyte subsets.RESULTS:
The median thalidomide treatment time was 12.0 days. The median duration of SARS-CoV-2 negative conversion from admission and hospital stay length were briefer in the thalidomide group compared to the control group (respectively, 11.0 vs 23.0 days, P = 0.043; 18.5 vs 30.0 days, P = 0.043). The mean reduction rates at 7-10 days after treatment for serum interleukin-6 and interferon-γ concentrations were greater in the thalidomide group compared to the control group. Alterations in lymphocyte numbers in the subsets between the 2 groups were similar.CONCLUSIONS:
Thalidomide plus short-term glucocorticoid therapy is an effective and safe regimen for the treatment of severely ill COVID-19 patients. The mechanism of action is most likely inhibition of inflammatory cytokine production.Keywords
Full text:
Available
Collection:
International databases
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Thalidomide
/
Dexamethasone
/
SARS-CoV-2
/
COVID-19 Drug Treatment
Type of study:
Experimental Studies
/
Observational study
/
Randomized controlled trials
Limits:
Aged
/
Female
/
Humans
/
Male
/
Middle aged
Language:
English
Journal:
Int J Infect Dis
Journal subject:
Communicable Diseases
Year:
2021
Document Type:
Article
Affiliation country:
J.ijid.2020.12.023
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