The first COVID-19 patient in India to be treated with a monoclonal antibody cocktail was released from a Haryana hospital today, just one day after receiving the vaccine. The patient, an 82-year-old man with multiple comorbidities, was discharged from Medanta Hospital after receiving the injection, according to hospital chairman Dr Naresh Trehan.
Monoclonal antibodies are antibodies that imitate the immune system’s ability to fight viruses and other pathogens. When former US President Donald Trump tested positive last year, he was given an antibody cocktail like this.
Dr Trehan told news agency ANI that the monoclonal antibodies cocktail has been widely used in the United States and Europe. “Our experience shows that if given within the first seven days of (Covid) infection, 70-80% of people who would otherwise go to the hospital for treatment will not need to,” Dr Trehan said.
Dr Satya Prakash Yadav, a doctor at Medanta Hospital, tweeted. Finally, a monoclonal antibody cocktail to treat COVID-19 is available on the market, and Medanta, an 84-year-old gentleman with COVID-19, is the first patient to get it today. Let’s hope it helps to cure more COVID-19 patients.
Dr Trehan said they will continue to monitor the patient who went home today after the monoclonal antibodies cocktail treatment. “…We’re going to follow him. Virus multiplication drops especially in those people who have high virus load and also in those who are at high risk of severe infection,” Dr Trehan said.
“When Casirivimab and Imdevimab are injected into infected patient in early stage it blocks virus from entering cells of patient. It is working against COVID-19 and also effective against B.1.617 variant. This is a new weapon,” the Medanta Hospital chairman said.
In India, Cipla and Roche India have launched an antibody cocktail to treat COVID-19 cases that are mild to moderate. Each dose costs a little more than 59,000 dollars, and a multi-dose pack (which can treat two patients) costs 1.19 lakh dollars.
In February, the United States approved the emergency use of Bamlanivimab and Etesevimab for the treatment of mild to moderate COVID-19 in adults and children.
