PeaceHealth offering new treatment option for COVID patients
EUGENE, Ore. – We are pleased to announce that beginning this week, PeaceHealth is offering monoclonal antibody IV therapy, a promising treatment for patients at risk for severe complications from COVID-19.
PeaceHealth will initially provide the treatment at PeaceHealth Medical Group Valley River Urgent Care, which is closed to regular operations through October. Patients must have a provider referral to be eligible.
This is the first community monoclonal therapy clinic in the area. PeaceHealth is committed to providing access to this potentially life-saving therapy to the entire community.
The goal of the treatment is to prevent hospitalizations, reduce viral loads and lessen symptom severity, said Brenda Ormesher, MD, infectious disease specialist at PeaceHealth Sacred Heart Medical Center at RiverBend.
“We are delighted to be able to provide this option to anyone in our community who could benefit,” Dr. Ormesher said. “Monoclonal antibody therapy has been proven to reduce hospitalizations in about 70 percent of high-risk, COVID-positive patients.”
Dr. Ormesher emphasized that the treatment is not a cure, and does not provide any long-term immunity. “That’s what the vaccine is for,” she said.
Monoclonal antibody therapy received Emergency Use Authorization from the Federal Drug Administration last November for certain groups of non-hospitalized COVID-19 patients.
A form of immunotherapy traditionally used for patients with cancer and other diseases, monoclonal antibody treatment has shown to be very effective for patients who have mild to moderate symptoms from COVID-19 but a high risk of complications. The treatment continues to be active against the delta variant. Monoclonal antibodies are immune, lab-produced molecules designed to mimic the body’s natural response to infection. With COVID-19, these antibodies are made to recognize and bind to a part of the SARS-Co-V2 virus—the so-called spike protein—that enables it to infect human cells.
PeaceHealth is offering the combo drug therapy REGEN-COV (Carsirivimab/Imdevimab). Patients receive the antibodies through a 20-minute intravenous infusion followed by an hour of observation.
Monoclonal antibody treatment may be appropriate for patients with mild to moderate COVID-19 symptoms or those with known contact to COVID-19 and a high risk of developing serious complications. It may be given to anyone age 12 or over who also meets at least one of the following criteria:
- 65 years of age or older
- Cardiovascular disease, including congenital heart disease, or hypertension
- Chronic lung disease, including COPD, moderate to severe asthma, interstitial lung disease, cystic fibrosis, pulmonary hypertension
- BMI above 25 or, if age 12-17, a BMI greater than 85th percentile for age and gender based on CDC growth charts
- Chronic kidney disease
- Pregnant
- Diabetes
- Sickle cell disease
- Receiving immunosuppressive treatment or have an immunosuppressive disease
- Neurodevelopmental disorders, such as cerebral palsy, or other conditions that confer medical complexity (for example, genetic or metabolic syndromes and severe congenital abnormalities)
- Medical-related technological dependence, such as tracheostomy, gastrostomy or positive pressure ventilation
This Emergency Use Authorization Fact Sheet for Patients provides more information about monoclonal antibody therapy.
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About PeaceHealth: PeaceHealth, based in Vancouver, Wash., is a not-for-profit Catholic health system offering care to communities in Washington, Oregon and Alaska. PeaceHealth has more than 15,000 caregivers, a group practice with more than 1,200 providers and 10 medical centers serving both urban and rural communities throughout the Northwest. In 1890, the Sisters of St. Joseph of Peace founded what has become PeaceHealth. The Sisters shared expertise and transferred wisdom from one medical center to another, always finding the best way to serve the unmet need for healthcare in their communities. Today, PeaceHealth is the legacy of the founding Sisters and continues with a spirit of respect, stewardship, collaboration and social justice in fulfilling its Mission. Visit us online at peacehealth.org.
