Anakinra for COVID-19

Anakinra, a recombinant interleukin-1 receptor antagonist approved to treat rheumatoid arthritis, is associated with improved survival among COVID-19 patients, according to a small, retrospective study in the Lancet Rheumatology. Researchers in Italy compared 29 COVID-19 patients with moderate-to-severe acute respiratory distress syndrome who were given high-dose intravenous anakinra with 16 similar patients who weren’t given anakinra. All patients received noninvasive ventilation and standard care outside the ICU at baseline. Anakinra was associated with a higher survival rate at 21 days (90% vs. 56% with standard treatment), although rates of mechanical ventilation-free survival were similar between groups. Additionally, C-reactive protein levels improved faster with anakinra. Commentators call the results “promising” but “exploratory.”

https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanrhe/article/PIIS2665-9913(20)30127-2/fulltext