With inputs from Dr Monica Vasudev

UK is the first country to approve the bivalent booster Covid-19 vaccine 

The UK has become the first country to approve a bivalent booster vaccine for adults, which is an updated version of Moderna’s mRNA Covid-19 vaccine. About half (25 µg) of the Spikevax bivalent Original/Omicron vaccine contains the original 2020 virus strain and the remaining half (25 µg) consists of the Omicron (BA.1) variant…(Source: Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, Aug. 15, 2022).

suPAR: A new marker to predict incident VTE risk in Covid-19 patients

A recent study in the Journal of the American Heart Association has identified soluble urokinase plasminogen activator receptor (suPAR) as another marker to predict the risk of venous thromboembolism (VTE) in Covid-19 patients who have low d-dimer levels. The levels of suPAR were raised by 50% in patients who developed thromboembolism compared to those who did not. About 41% of patients were identified as low risk for VTE when both d-dimer (<1 mg/L) and suPAR (<11 ng/mL) were combined…(Source: Medscape, Aug. 16, 2022).

New guidelines for administration of convalescent plasma 

New guidelines on convalescent plasma from the Association for the Advancement of Blood and Biotherapies (AABB) strongly recommend against transfusion of Covid-19 convalescent plasma for unselected inpatients with moderate or severe disease. Exceptions are individuals who lack antibodies against the virus or immunocompromised patients. Outpatients at risk of severe disease should be administered the plasma along with the standard treatment. The complete guidelines are published in the Annals of Internal Medicine…(Source: Medscape, Aug. 16, 2022).

No benefits from metformin, ivermectin, or fluvoxamine in high risk Covid-19 patients

The phase III COVID-OUT trial has failed to demonstrate any benefits of metformin, ivermectin, or fluvoxamine administered as early outpatient treatment in preventing hypoxia, emergency visit, hospitalization or Covid-related mortality in high-risk patients with overweight and obesity…(Source: NEJM, Aug. 18, 2022).