Antibody treatment now available for COVID-19 patients in Sask.
Monoclonal antibody treatment is now available for Saskatchewan residents who have tested positive for COVID-19.
According to a release from the province, the treatment is intended to prevent hospitalization in people who are unvaccinated or severely immunosuppressed.
Dr. Satchan Takaya, an infectious disease specialist and the physician lead for the COVID monoclonal antibody project in Saskatchewan, said the province will be using Sotrovimab, which is one of three treatments that have interim authorization through Health Canada.
The government said the one-time treatment is only effective in the very early phase of infection.
Takaya said giving the treatment quickly could stop the initial viral phase before it progresses to something worse and forces the patient into hospital.
Those eligible include COVID-19 patients who are not vaccinated against the virus, immunocompromised patients, patients 55 years or older, or patients over the age of 18 with a high-risk comorbidity. The treatment must be administered within five days of symptoms starting.
“We are looking for not just people that are unvaccinated but people with that are unvaccinated with a risk factor,” Takaya said.
She added vaccinated people who may not have been able to mount a full immune response to the shot – like transplant patients – are also able to get the treatment.
Eligible patients will be identified through case investigation, says the province. Starting Nov. 1, COVID-19 patients will be able to self-assess their eligibility on the province’s website. If they are able to get the treatments, they will be told how to book an assessment. The final decision will be made by a health-care worker.
The treatments will be available in Regina and Saskatoon at Saskatchewan Health Authority testing sites.
Mark Wyatt, assistant deputy minister at the Ministry of Health, said the province has an allocation of 1,200 doses of the treatment, with 476 of those doses in Saskatchewan right now.
Though unvaccinated patients are able to get the antibody treatment, the province said it is not considered a substitute for vaccination.
Dr. Saqib Shahab, the province’s chief medical health officer, compared the treatment to getting in a crash while driving on an icy road – vaccines would be comparable to wearing your seatbelt, and the antibody treatment would the ambulance that may or may not arrive in time.
“Other therapeutics that may come in the future would be an added tool to use, especially for fully vaccinated immune suppressed, certainly vaccines are our most effective tool that we should all use right away,” said Shahab.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'A beautiful soul': Funeral held for baby boy killed in wrong-way crash on Highway 401
A funeral was held on Wednesday for a three-month-old boy who died after being involved in a wrong-way crash on Highway 401 in Whitby last week.
Police handcuff man trying to enter Drake's Toronto mansion
Toronto police say a man was taken into custody outside Drake's Bridle Path mansion Wednesday afternoon after he tried to gain access to the residence.
Biden says he will stop sending bombs and artillery shells to Israel if they launch major invasion of Rafah
U.S. President Joe Biden said for the first time Wednesday he would halt shipments of American weapons to Israel, which he acknowledged have been used to kill civilians in Gaza, if Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu orders a major invasion of the city of Rafah.
U.S. presidential candidate RFK Jr. had a brain worm, has recovered, campaign says
Independent U.S. presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. had a parasite in his brain more than a decade ago, but has fully recovered, his campaign said, after the New York Times reported about the ailment.
What is whooping cough and should Canadians be concerned as Europe declares outbreak?
There is currently a whooping cough epidemic in Europe, with 10 times as many cases compared to the previous two years. While an outbreak has not been declared nationwide in Canada, whooping cough is regularly detected in the country.
Pfizer agrees to settle more than 10K lawsuits over Zantac cancer risk: Bloomberg News
Pfizer has agreed to settle more than 10,000 lawsuits about cancer risks related to the now discontinued heartburn drug Zantac, Bloomberg News reported on Wednesday, citing people familiar with the deal.
Quebec premier defends new museum on Quebecois nation after Indigenous criticism
Quebec Premier Francois Legault is defending his comments about a new history museum after he was accused by a prominent First Nations group of trying to erase their history.
B.C. theatre to pay $55K to neurodivergent actor in discrimination case
British Columbia's human rights tribunal has awarded a neurodigergent actor, who was diagnosed with sensory and learning disorders, more than $55,000 after finding that a Kelowna theatre company discriminated against him because of his disabilities.
Who's responsible for regulating cannabis stores operating under the sovereignty banner?
It's not quite clear who is supposed to be regulating so-called sovereign cannabis stores or even ensure they're benefiting Indigenous communities.