Ruxolitinib in treating patients hospitalized due to COVID-19
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Reviewed by Dat Tien Nguyen, B.A, ScM.
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Posted on December 16th, 2022
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The severity of SARS-CoV-2 infection is highly associated with the degree of JAK/STAT pathway activation. Thus, inhibitors that target this pathway can potentially be used to reduce the unnecessary damage caused by the immune system. Ruxolitinib, which can bind and inactivate JAK protein, was investigated by a recent study for its ability to improve the clinical outcome of patients hospitalized due to COVID-19.
The phase 3 clinical trial included 211 patients, above 12 years old who had been hospitalized and had undergone mechanical ventilation. They were randomly assigned to 3 treatment groups: 1) 15 mg of ruxolitinib twice a day; 2) 5 mg of ruxolitinib twice a day; or 3) placebo. These treatments were used concurrently with the patient’s current care and lasted for 14 days. After the 28 day surveillance period, the study found that the odds of death in the 15 mg ruxolitinib therapy was lower than the placebo. In addition, the treatment significantly reduced the length of stay in the ICU and the amount of time using ventilators. In terms of safety, there was no significant difference in adverse events frequency between the three treatment groups; however, those in the ruxolitinib groups are more prone to infection due to the medication’s immunosuppressive ability.
The phase 3 clinical trial included 211 patients, above 12 years old who had been hospitalized and had undergone mechanical ventilation. They were randomly assigned to 3 treatment groups: 1) 15 mg of ruxolitinib twice a day; 2) 5 mg of ruxolitinib twice a day; or 3) placebo. These treatments were used concurrently with the patient’s current care and lasted for 14 days. After the 28 day surveillance period, the study found that the odds of death in the 15 mg ruxolitinib therapy was lower than the placebo. In addition, the treatment significantly reduced the length of stay in the ICU and the amount of time using ventilators. In terms of safety, there was no significant difference in adverse events frequency between the three treatment groups; however, those in the ruxolitinib groups are more prone to infection due to the medication’s immunosuppressive ability.