Lack of tocilizumab effect on mortality in COVID19 patients

Sci Rep. 2020 Oct 13;10(1):17100. doi: 10.1038/s41598-020-74328-x.

Abstract

Off-label tocilizumab use in COVID-19 patients reflects concern for cytokine release syndrome. Comparison of matched COVID-19 pneumonia patients found elevated IL-6 levels correlated with mortality that did not change with tocilizumab administration. Correlating mortality with increased IL-6 doesn't imply causality however lack of improvement by tocilizumab requires further clinical trial alterations.

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Aged
  • Aged, 80 and over
  • Antibodies, Monoclonal, Humanized / immunology
  • Antibodies, Monoclonal, Humanized / therapeutic use*
  • Betacoronavirus / isolation & purification
  • COVID-19
  • Coronavirus Infections / drug therapy*
  • Coronavirus Infections / mortality
  • Coronavirus Infections / virology
  • Female
  • Ferritins / analysis
  • Humans
  • Interleukin-6 / analysis
  • Male
  • Middle Aged
  • Odds Ratio
  • Pandemics
  • Pneumonia, Viral / drug therapy*
  • Pneumonia, Viral / mortality
  • Pneumonia, Viral / virology
  • Proportional Hazards Models
  • Receptors, Interleukin-6 / immunology
  • SARS-CoV-2
  • Survival Rate

Substances

  • Antibodies, Monoclonal, Humanized
  • Interleukin-6
  • Receptors, Interleukin-6
  • Ferritins
  • tocilizumab