A potential new treatment for COVID-19 patients with MIS-C
Researchers believe they have identified a potential new treatment for multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C), detailing their findings in Critical Care Explorations.[1]
MIS-C, a new and potentially fatal condition associated with COVID-19, can cause significant damage to a patient’s heart, brain and gastrointestinal organs. Noting that the SARS-CoV-2 virus sometimes remains in the gut for weeks or even months after a COVID-19 infection, potentially triggering the development of MIS-C, specialists from Massachusetts General Hospital and Brigham and Women’s Hospital wanted to see if larazotide acetate — a medication originally developed to treat celiac disease — could provide any value as a MIS-C treatment.
Four extremely ill MIS-C patients between the ages of 3 and 17 were include in the study. Each child was given four daily doses of larazotide acetate for 21 days. An additional 22 MIS-C patients were treated with steroids and/or intravenous immunoglobulin therapy.
Overall, the four children given larazotide acetate saw their gastrointestinal symptoms decrease significantly faster than other patients. The medication was also linked to a slightly shorter hospital stay.
In addition, the team noted, inflammatory spike proteins associated with the SARS-CoV-2 virus appeared to leave the blood much faster when patients were treated with larazotide acetate.
“Our results demonstrate the urgent need for the development of diagnostic and prognostic tools to advance our understanding and treatment of this devastating disease,” lead author Lael M. Yonker, MD, pediatric pulmonologist and director of the Cystic Fibrosis Center at MassGeneral Hospital for Children, said in a prepared statement.
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Michael has more than 18 years of experience as a professional writer and editor. He has written at length about cardiology, radiology, artificial intelligence and other key healthcare topics.