WHO recommends two new Covid-19 treatments amid rise in hospital admissions

The WHO experts recommended arthritis drug baricitinib and synthetic antibody treatment Sotrovimab to stave off serious illness and death from Covid-19.

The World Health Organization approved two new treatments for coronavirus disease (Covid-19) as Omicron cases put a strain on the healthcare system around the world. The WHO experts recommended arthritis drug baricitinib and synthetic antibody treatment Sotrovimab to stave off serious illness and death from Covid-19.

Medical staff treat a Covid-19 patient on the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) at the Cleveland Clinic in Cleveland, Ohio, US. (Reuters)

The experts strongly recommended the use of Baricitinib as an alternative to interleukin-6 (IL-6) receptor blockers, in combination with corticosteroids, to treat severe or critical Covid patients. They suggested that the use of baricitinib with corticosteroids in severe Covid patients led to better survival rates and reduced need for ventilators.

“The strong recommendation for baricitinib in those with severe or critical illness reflects moderate certainty evidence for benefits on mortality, duration of mechanical ventilation and hospital length of stay (high certainty) with no observed increase in adverse effects leading to drug discontinuation,” the updated WHO guidelines say.

The experts suggested that baricitinib and IL-6 receptor blockers like tocilizumab and sarilumab have similar effects and the decision should be based on issues including cost and clinician experience.

They also recommended Sotrovimab for people with non-serious Covid who are at the highest risk of hospitalisation, such as the elderly and people with chronic diseases.

The use of Sotrovimab in patients with non-severe illness led to a substantial reduction in the risk of hospitalisation and trivial benefits in those at lower risk. However, the drug probably has little or no impact on mortality and on mechanical ventilation, according to the guidelines.

“There were insufficient data to recommend one monoclonal antibody treatment over another, and evidence on their efficacy for emerging variants is likely to influence future recommendations,” it said.