Tocilizumab in Patients Hospitalized with COVID-19 Pneumonia
Author(s): Ayushi Agrawal, Swaroopa Chakole and K Himabindu Reddy*
Abstract
Background: Corona virus disease originated from Wuhan, China city of Hubei spreader all over world and immensely threatening people causing respiratory distress which has high mortality. SARS-CoV-2 causative agents enters human through inhalation of droplets leads to CD4+T cell dependent immune response and increased antibody production along with immense cytokine release. COVID cases raises alarmingly reporting deaths in an alarming rate. In the meantime interleukin-6 encourages endothelial damage and increases vessels permeability, interleunkin-6 as cytokine plays a role in the vessels permeability related with the disease.
Summary: Heterogeneous clinical course ranging from asymptomatic via mildly symptomatic to a deadly acute severe respiratory syndrome leading to death. Patient main mortality factor is coagulation dysfunction thus all hospitalized critically ill COVID patient should receive pharmacological prophylaxis for thromboembolism. COVID is not always linked with superadded bacterial infection but serum procalcitonin is suggestive of bacterial pathogen that is if low procalcitonin suggest against bacterial superadded pneumonia.
Tocilizumab dampens down the risk of poor outcome and also decreases the hazard of minor infections in COVID-19 as super infection.
Corona virus infection is cytokine storm during the major acute phase and the cytokine playing the major virulence is inter leukin 6 causing inflammatory hazards in COVID infected critically ill patients.
Various Meta analyses of studies under went to determine efficacy of tocilizumab but results leave the efficacy controversial