Use of Monoclonal Antibodies Therapy for Treatment of Mild to Moderate COVID-19 in 4 Patients with Rheumatologic Disorders.

BACKGROUND The use of monoclonal antibodies therapy (MAT) in early mild to moderate Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has gained importance in recent times. However, there is limited information on the safety and efficacy of MAT in treating COVID-19 in patients with underlying rheumatologic diseases. Patients with rheumatologic diseases are usually on long-term corticosteroids and immunosuppressive therapy, which increases their risk for progressing to more severe forms of COVID-19. We report a case series of 4 patients with rheumatologic diseases who were treated with MAT for COVID-19. MATERIAL AND METHODS A retrospective observational study was conducted in our institution on patients with underlying rheumatological disorders who received MAT as per the EUA protocol of the FDA. RESULTS Two of the 4 patients were on immunosuppresive therapy at the time of receiving MAT. They recovered from COVID-19 without any adverse outcomes. No flare of underlying rheumatologic disease was noted. CONCLUSIONS MAT was observed to be a safe and effective therapy in 4 patients with rheumatological illnesses and COVID-19 treated at our hospital.

Exploring the Causal Relationship Between Arterial and Venous Thromboembolism: A Case Series With Review of Literature.

Venous thromboembolism (VTE) occurs due to venous stasis or low flow state within the blood vessels, resulting in subsequent fibrin and platelet aggregation leading to thrombosis. Arterial thrombosis affects various arteries including coronaries and is primarily due to platelet aggregation with little fibrin deposition leading to thrombosis. Although both arterial and venous thrombosis are considered as separate entities, some studies have suggested an association between them despite having distinctive causative factors. We retrospectively reviewed patients at our institution who were admitted with acute coronary syndrome (ACS) and underwent cardiac catheterization over a decade between 2009 and 2020 to look for patients who had both venous thromboembolic events and ACS. Here, we report a case series of three such patients who were found to have both VTE and coronary arterial thrombosis. However, it is unclear if having one of venous vs arterial clot increases the risk of having other vascular conditions, and further studies are needed to evaluate this hypothesis in the near future.

Growth in Egg Yolk Enhances Salmonella Enteritidis Colonization and Virulence in a Mouse Model of Human Colitis.

Salmonella Enteritidis (SE) is one of the most common causes of bacterial food-borne illnesses in the world. Despite the SE's ability to colonize and infect a wide-range of host, the most common source of infection continues to be the consumption of contaminated shell eggs and egg-based products. To date, the role of the source of SE infection has not been studied as it relates to SE pathogenesis and resulting disease. Using a streptomycin-treated mouse model of human colitis, this study examined the virulence of SE grown in egg yolk and Luria Bertani (LB) broth, and mouse feces collected from mice experimentally infected with SEE1 (SEE1 passed through mice). Primary observations revealed that the mice infected with SE grown in egg yolk displayed greater illness and disease markers than those infected with SE passed through mice or grown in LB broth. Furthermore, the SE grown in egg yolk achieved higher rates of colonization in the mouse intestines and extra-intestinal organs of infected mice than the SE from LB broth or mouse feces. Our results here indicate that the source of SE infection may contribute to the overall pathogenesis of SE in a second host. These results also suggest that reservoir-pathogen dynamics may be critical for SE's ability to establish colonization and priming for virulence potential.