A group such as a university in the United Kingdom has announced research results that the mortality rate was reduced by administering a therapeutic drug for rheumatoid arthritis developed in Japan to patients who became seriously ill with the new coronavirus. ..
This was published by groups such as the British university "Imperial College London".
In the group, about 800 severely ill patients who are on a respirator in the intensive care unit are treated with the rheumatoid arthritis drug "Actemra = generic name tocilizumab" and the drug "Sarilumab" with the same mechanism. I checked.
As a result, the mortality rate was 35.8% in about 400 patients who did not use "Actemra", while the mortality rate was 28%, which was about 7 points lower in about 350 patients who received "Actemra".
The same effect was seen with "Sarilumab".
In addition, with both drugs, the period of intensive care was shortened by about 10 days.
"Actemra" is a drug for rheumatoid arthritis developed by a group of specially appointed professors Tadamitsu Kishimoto of Osaka University and Chugai Pharmaceutical, and has the effect of suppressing the phenomenon of "cytokine storm" in which immunity runs out of control and attacks one's own cells. It is expected that there will be.
In response to the results, the British government has announced on its website a policy to encourage critically ill patients to use "Actemra" and the like.