Thailand urged to roll out antibody treatment as Covid hospitalisation surges
A top virologist has urged the Public Health Ministry to roll out long-acting antibody (LAAB) treatment to protect people vulnerable to Covid-19 as infection levels surge.
The Department of Disease Control reports that hospital beds occupied by Covid patients have jumped from 5% last month to 8.5% this month.
Writing on Facebook, Dr Yong Poovorawan said LAAB treatments such as AstraZeneca’s Evushield should be administered to at-risk groups to protect against the Omicron BA.2.75 driving Thailand’s latest Covid-19 wave.
He added that LAAB could be used prevent serious infection and death among people who cannot be fully vaccinated due to health conditions including cancer and kidney disease.
Dr Yong, who heads Chulalongkorn University’s Centre of Excellence in Clinical Virology, said the Public Health Ministry has sufficient stocks of LAAB to treat patients.
"People vulnerable to Covid-19 infection should receive antibodies to reduce their risk of developing severe symptoms and death," he said.
He added that these stocks should be used immediately to reduce health impacts of Covid-19 as their efficiency would drop as the virus mutates further.
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