Infection and Drug Resistance (Apr 2021)
The Role for Tocilizumab in COVID-19 Patients: Reflections on Monza Cohort Data
Abstract
Serena Capici,1,* Luca Sala,1,* Stefania Galimberti,2 Maria Grazia Valsecchi,2 Nicola Squillace,3 Giulia Gustinetti,3 Marina Elena Cazzaniga,1,4 Paolo Bonfanti3,4 1Phase 1 Research Unit, ASST Monza, Monza, Italy; 2Bicocca Bioinformatics Biostatistics and Bioimaging B4 Center, School of Medicine and Surgery, University of Milano - Bicocca, Monza, Italy; 3Infectious Disease Unit, ASST Monza, Monza, Italy; 4School of Medicine and Surgery, University of Milano-Bicocca, Monza, Italy*These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Marina Elena CazzanigaPhase 1 Research Unit, ASST Monza, Monza, ItalyTel +390392339037Email [email protected]: The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 pandemic has dominated the global health scenario from the beginning of 2020 and still represents a major health emergency. Cytokine inhibitors as tocilizumab have been used to treat COVID-19 severe pneumonia with conflicting results. We performed a retrospective study whose results can contribute to the general overview regarding the role of these agents in severe COVID-19 pneumonia, suggesting an interesting, even not statistically significant evidence of the effectiveness of tocilizumab treatment in this disease and sow a seed of reflection about their use in future waves of pandemic. We compared two cohorts of patients treated with local standard of care and with tocilizumab in the experimental one. With a median follow-up of 92 days, deaths were 6 and 16 in the tocilizumab and the standard of care group, respectively. With a longer follow-up than previous studies, a trend in difference with regards to mortality of the groups was observed.Keywords: Sars-Cov-2, COVID-19, pneumonia, tocilizumab
