Plymouth Covid-19 vaccine trial needs under 65s to come forward
The new ComFluCOV study will operate from Knowle House Surgery in Crownhill and will see people under 65 who have had the first dose of the Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine
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Arthritis drug Tocilizumab reduces Covid-19 deaths, Plymouth trials show
Patients who take tocilizumab are not only more likely to survive Covid-19, but also tend to spend less time in hospital
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A trial carried out in South West hospitals has proven the effectiveness of a using an arthritis drug to treat patients suffering from Covid-19.
The RECOVERY research project, which included Plymouth’s Derriford Hospital, has shown that tocilizumab – an anti-inflammatory rheumatoid arthritis treatment – reduces the risk of death for patients suffering from severe effects of the virus.
Researchers also found that the drug reduces the length of hospital admission, and the risk of patients requiring mechanical ventilation.
A clinical trial including patients from Cornwall s hospitals says it has found evidence that an anti-inflammatory rheumatoid arthritis treatment reduces the risk of death for hospitalised patients with severe Covid-19. Researchers with the RECOVERY trial say that tocilizumab also reduces the length of hospital admission, and the risk of patients requiring mechanical ventilation. The RECOVERY trial was the world’s first study to show that dexamethasone – a cheap and available steroid that lowers inflammation in the body – reduces the risk of dying from Covid-19. Now it has gone a step further and found that combining this with with tocilizumab in Covid-19 patients who have significant inflammation reduces mortality by about one third for patients requiring simple oxygen, and nearly one half for those requiring invasive mechanical ventilation.