Thiruvananthapuram: Monoclonal antibody cocktail is not effective against the Omicron variant of the coronavirus, according to the state health department.
The health department's guidelines state that this medicine can be used for those with comorbidities in the early stages of the Covid infection to prevent the disease from aggravating. The guidelines were issued to prevent the unnecessary use of the medicine, and prioritise its use for needy patients. In case of any doubt, a decision should be taken after consulting the Institutional Medical Board.
Even if Covid vaccinated get infected with Omicron or Delta variant, the severity of illness would be less. They are less likely to become seriously ill. They are also less likely to benefit from the monoclonal antibody cocktail.
The antibody cocktail treatment is more effective for those who have not been vaccinated and high-risk patients. It is also for vaccinated patients with low antibody response such as HIV infected, cancer patients, those who have been using steroids for long, those who have undergone organ transplants, kidney patients undergoing dialysis, people with severe liver diseases, cardiac ailments, and serious lung diseases. They can be administered monoclonal antibody cocktail.
The S-gene Target Failure (SGTF) test or the RT-PCR kit OmiSure can be used to detect if the coronavirus variant is Omicron or Delta. The use of monoclonal antibody cocktail should be based on this test. At hospitals where these kits are not available, the antibody cocktail should be used only on those categories of patients who will get maximum benefit from it. These guidelines are applicable to all hospitals in the state.
