The Efficacy and Safety of Thalidomide in the Adjuvant Treatment of Moderate New Coronavirus (COVID-19) Pneumonia

Overview

In December 2019, Wuhan, in Hubei province, China, became the center of an outbreak of pneumonia of unknown cause. In a short time, Chinese scientists had shared the genome information of a novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) from these pneumonia patients and developed a real-time reverse transcription PCR (real time RT-PCR) diagnostic assay. In view of the fact that there is currently no effective antiviral therapy, the prevention or treatment of lung injury caused by COVID-19 can be an alternative target for current treatment. Thalidomide has anti-inflammatory, anti-fibrotic, anti-angiogenesis, and immune regulation effects. This study is the first Prospective, Multicenter, Randomized, Double-blind, Placebo, Parallel Controlled Clinical Study at home and abroad to use immunomodulators to treat patients with COVID-19 infection.

The new coronavirus (COVID-19) \[1\] belongs to the new beta coronavirus. Current research shows that it has 85% homology with bat SARS-like coronavirus (bat-SL-CoVZC45), but its genetic characteristics are similar to SARSr-CoV. There is a clear difference from MERSr-COV. Since December 2019, Wuhan City, Hubei Province has successively found multiple cases of patients with pneumonia infected by a new type of coronavirus. With the spread of the epidemic, as of 12:00 on February 12, 2020, a total of 44726 confirmed cases nationwide (Hubei Province) 33,366 cases, accounting for 74.6%), with 1,114 deaths (1068 cases in Hubei Province), and a mortality rate of 2.49% (3.20% in Hubei Province). In view of the fact that there is currently no effective antiviral therapy, the prevention or treatment of lung injury caused by COVID-19 can be an alternative target for current treatment. Thalidomide has anti-inflammatory, anti-fibrotic, anti-angiogenesis, and immune regulation effects. In the early clinical practice of treating severe A H1N1, it was clinically concerned, and combined with hormones and conventional treatment, and achieved good results. Although the death rate of COVID-19 infected persons is not high, their rapid infectiousness and the lack of effective antiviral treatment currently have become the focus of the national and international epidemic. Thalidomide has been available for more than sixty years, and has been widely used in clinical applications. It has been proved to be safe and effective in IPF, severe H1N1 influenza lung injury and paraquat poisoning lung injury, and the mechanism of anti-inflammatory and anti-fibrosis is relatively clear. As the current research on COVID-19 at home and abroad mainly focuses on the exploration of antiviral efficacy, this study intends to find another way to start with host treatment in the case that antiviral is difficult to overcome in the short term, in order to control or relieve lung inflammation caused by the virus To improve lung function. This study is the first study at home and abroad to use immunomodulators to treat patients with COVID-19 infection. It is hoped that the patients can get out of the bitter sea as soon as possible and provide effective solutions for the country and society.