Covid-19 Treatment Guidelines: Infectious Disease Society of America


Summary of COVID-19 Treatment Guidelines
Infectious Diseases Society of America (ISDA) Guidelines on the Treatment and Management of Patients with COVID-19 in my words
Published by IDSA, 4/11/2020

The following is my take on the treatment recommendations put out by the experts at the Infectious Diseases Society of America. The original article can be accessed here.

Most people who become infected, suffer a mild illness consisting of sore throat, cough and fever. In some cases, the virus infects the lungs causing shortness of breath and pneumonia. For those who are advised hospitalization, the treatments may include intravenous fluids and control of the fever. In more severe cases, breathing support may be needed in the form of a ventilator.

Since there is no established treatment for this novel virus, many treatments are being tested. The treatments (clinical trials) are available at most of the major hospitals and institutions.  The experts at the ISDA have the following 7 treatment recommendations:


Recommendation 1. Among patients who have been admitted to the hospital with COVID-19, the IDSA guideline panel recommends hydroxychloroquine/chloroquine (HCQ)  in the context of a clinical trial.

Recommendation 2. Among patients who have been admitted to the hospital with COVID-19, the IDSA guideline panel recommends hydroxychloroquine/chloroquine plus azithromycin only in the context of a clinical trial.

Comments:

The currently available best evidence failed to demonstrate or to exclude a beneficial effect of HCQ on clinical progression of COVID-19 or on viral clearance by molecular (PCR) tests, although a somewhat higher proportion in the HCQ group experienced clinical improvement. However, the certainty in the evidence was rated as very low mainly due to small sample sizes.

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Recommendation 3. Among patients who have been admitted to the hospital with COVID-19, the IDSA guideline panel recommends the combination of lopinavir/ritonavir only in the context of a clinical trial.

Comments:
The guideline panel recommends the use of lopinavir/ritonavir only in the context of a clinical trial. Benefits and Toxicities are of the same degree. Additional clinical trials or prospective outcome registries are needed to inform research for treatment with lopinavir/ritonavir and other HIV-1 protease inhibitors for patients with COVID-19

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Recommendation 4. Among patients who have been admitted to the hospital with COVID-19 pneumonia, the IDSA guideline panel suggests against the use of corticosteroids. (Conditional recommendation, very low certainty of evidence)
Recommendation 5. Among patients who have been admitted to the hospital with ARDS due to COVID-19, the IDSA guideline panel recommends the use of corticosteroids in the context of a clinical trial.

Comments:

Steroids were widely used in China to prevent the development of respiratory distress (ARDS) in patients with COVID-19 pneumonia. As COVID-19 is a self-limited viral illness in most cases, a small subset of patients progresses from COVID-19 pneumonia to develop ARDS. Based on limited data from other coronaviruses, there is no clear benefit and potential harm from corticosteroids.

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Recommendation 6. Among patients who have been admitted to the hospital with COVID-19, the IDSA guideline panel recommends tocilizumab only in the context of a clinical trial.

Comments:

It was estimated that the patients in one study (21 patients, 4 critical and 17 severe) would have had a baseline risk of death at 20% as matched in severity. Therefore, treatment with tocilizumab may have reduced mortality since there were no deaths reported out of 21 patients. However, this conclusion remains highly uncertain given the lack of a contemporaneous control or adjustments for confounding factors. Out of 21 patients, 19 were discharged from the hospital suggesting a 9.5% rate of failure of clinical improvement in the CT scan findings.
The guideline panel recommended tocilizumab only in the context of a clinical trial.

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Recommendation 7. Among patients who have been admitted to the hospital with COVID-19, the IDSA guideline panel recommends COVID-19 convalescent plasma in the context of a clinical trial.

Comments

Compared with a 30% mortality rate in the historical control (3/10), no deaths were reported among patients receiving COVID-19 convalescent plasma. The guideline panel recommends COVID-19 convalescent plasma in the context of a clinical trial.

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