By Dr Ifeanyi J Okafor

October 3, 2020


President Trump’s physician Sean Conley said in a statement earlier on Friday that the president received 8g dose of Regeneron’s polyclonal antibody treatment after a test revealed he was infected with coronavirus.

Mr Trump reportedly has mild COVID-19 symptoms, including mild fever, fatigue and congestion, and he was transferred to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center yesterday.


What is Regeneron’s polyclonal antibody treatment?



It’s an experimental antibody treatment, which consists of combination of two antibodies directed against a key protein of the coronavirus. They bind to a region on the main surface protein, spike, that helps the virus attach to a receptor on human cells called ACE2.

One antibody comes from a human who had recovered from a coronavirus infection; a B cell that makes the antibody was harvested from the person’s blood and the genes for the immune protein isolated and copied.

The other antibody is from a mouse, which was engineered to have an immune system, that had the spike protein injected into it.


Any research to support the use of this antibody treatment in COVID-19?



Experiments in lab animals – golden hamsters and rhesus macaque monkeys – showed that the antibody treatment could reduce virus levels and the severity of the disease.

Earlier this week, Regeneron, the maker of the antibody treatment, presented preliminary data from its ongoing clinical trial in people who tested positive for coronavirus but were asymptomatic or, in the most extreme cases, had moderate disease.

The results show no serious safety concerns, and the treatment reduced viral load and shortened symptomatic disease in patients who did not have coronavirus antibodies at the trial’s start.

However, it’s unclear whether the treatment can prevent severe COVID-19 disease.


What other treatments is President Trump receiving?



The statement released by the President’s physician said that in addition to the antibody treatment, Mr Trump “has been taking zinc, vitamin D, famotidine, melatonin and a daily aspirin.”

From the wording, it’s unclear whether Mr Trump was taking those medicines before testing positive for coronavirus.

Famotidine has been suggested to be a treatment for COVID-19, but it’s also a popular heartburn remedy.

A research assessing the impact of famotidine in hospitalized COVID-19 patients in New York was hampered by inability to recruit enough patients. The Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research, which initiated that trial, released a statement yesterday citing evidence it was helpful for COVID-19 but also saying, “We have yet to prove [famotidine’s] efficacy.”

President Trump's doctor also announced Friday night that Mr Trump has begun receiving an antiviral drug, Remdesivir. The drug has been shown to shorten coronavirus patients’ hospital stay.

“This evening I’m happy to report that the President is doing very well. He is not requiring any supplemental oxygen, but in consultation with specialists we have elected to initiate Remdesivir therapy.”

“He has completed his first dose and is resting comfortably.”


Is President Trump also taking hydroxychloroquine?



The statement released by the President’s physician, was notably silent on this issue.

Hydroxychloroquine is an antimalarial promoted by Mr Trump as a COVID-19 treatment in controversial circumstances.

However, several research conducted found the drug was not effective against COVID-19.



https://www.yourhealthng.com.ng/2020/10/03/president-trumps-covid-19-treatment-what-is-known-so-far/



Read also:

https://www.yourhealthng.com.ng/2020/09/29/vitamin-d-reduces-coronavirus-deaths-and-prevents-the-infection-studies-find/

https://www.yourhealthng.com.ng/2020/08/02/hydroxychloroquine-as-treatment-for-covid-19-does-it-help-or-hurt/

OK ooo

4 years more for trump