That’s the main conclusion of the World Health Organization (WHO) in a new analysis of corticosteroids, a class of drugs that have been around for dozens of years and are much cheaper than the new experimental COVID treatments in development, which suggests that drugs like dexamethasone can reduce the chances of COVID-19-related death by up to 35% in the sickest patients.
The WHO analysis of coronavirus drugs covered seven separate studies. And while such an analysis, called a “meta-analysis,” is not as rigorous as other types of trials, such as a randomized controlled study, the data is compelling.
Corticosteroids have a very different mechanism of action than many of the other coronavirus drugs in development. COVID-19 is a peculiar disease. For others, an active infection can mean suffering for months. And for others, the misery may persist through the response of their own immune system to attack the pathogen.
The new WHO analysis suggests that steroids like hydrocortisone and dexamethasone, which fight inflammation, can dramatically reduce the risk of death for COVID patients sick enough to require a ventilator or other extraordinary medical measures rather than just reduce the number of days it takes. spend in a hospital.
That does not mean that all people infected with COVID should receive such treatments. In the new guidelines, the WHO issued a “strong recommendation” for corticosteroid therapy, either intravenously or orally, for seven to 10 days for the sickest patients. For those who don’t have a serious illness, not so much at this time.
Recommendations can also carry cost considerations. New treatments for COVID in the midst of an outbreak may well drive up the prices of the innovation costs of those therapies for drug companies.
