The head of the Scientific Committee for Combating Corona in Egypt, Dr. Hossam Hosny, revealed to "Sky News Arabia" details about the updated treatment protocol for COVID-19 patients and the addition of new medications to keep up with disease developments. Hosny stated that the committee has been studying newly approved medications by international bodies for the past two months, considering the pandemic situation of the virus, leading to the inclusion of medications that have proven effective in treating COVID-19, both for moderate and severe cases.
He explained that a medication for moderate cases was added, which is based on monoclonal antibodies, and is provided in hospitals receiving suspected and infected COVID-19 cases. The "monoclonal" drug was used to treat former U.S. President Donald Trump in October of last year, alongside a mixture of two types of antibodies produced by the American biotechnology company Regeneron.
The Egyptian health official also mentioned that another medication was added for severe cases, especially those affected by what is known as "cytokine storm." A cytokine storm results from an overactive immune system that attacks itself, causing severe symptoms, and occurs in some severe COVID-19 patients, leading to a rapid deterioration of their health status.
Hosny indicated that with the update of the new COVID-19 protocol, there are now two treatment options available for severe cases, rather than just one path, which adds hope for recovery and helps reduce mortality rates.
He emphasized that there is no connection between the update in the Egyptian treatment protocol and the occurrence of black fungus. He also confirmed that no medications were removed from the latest protocol for mild, moderate, or severe cases, pointing out the stable epidemiological situation of COVID-19 in Egypt.
He continued by stating that the health system is "still capable of accommodating all cases of infection and treating them, while providing the full protocol medications without shortages."
In the latest official statistics, the Egyptian Ministry of Health announced on Sunday that there were 1,007 new COVID-19 cases in Egypt, bringing the total number of patients to 261,666, with 191,332 recovering and 46 new deaths, raising the total number of pandemic victims to 15,047.
