FARGO — Bill and Julie O’Leary received monoclonal antibody treatment at Sanford Health here, just a day after testing positive for COVID-19.
It was only a matter of hours before they saw improvement, they said.
Both have high blood pressure and other conditions that put them at higher risk of getting seriously ill and being hospitalized because of the virus.
Bill, 59, said he felt the difference almost immediately, while Julie, 56, felt better the following morning.
“I definitely would recommend it. It’s scary to be lying at home, not knowing what you can do,” he said.
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“If it’s keeping people out of the hospital, we were very willing to do it,” she said.
The North Dakota Medical Association and its physician advisory group want to get the word out about the treatment to potential patients and their doctors, because it’s proving to be safe and effective.
It must be given early in the course of the illness, like in the case of the O’Learys, for the best possible outcome.
Dr. Josh Ranum, who practices in Mott and Hettinger, N.D., and is vice president of the NDMA, said 3.5% of people with COVID-19 who’ve received the antibody infusion have ended up in the hospital during the course of their illness, compared with a 10-12% hospitalization rate for those who don’t get the treatment.
“For me, I just think about it as a 60% reduction in risk of hospitalization,” Ranum said.
Since most people who die from COVID-19 have been hospitalized, fewer people in the hospital should mean a lower death rate, he said.
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The state is distributing the medications, known as bamlanivimab and casirivimab/imdevimab, by courier to 36 critical access hospitals in North Dakota and the six major referral hospitals in Grand Forks, Fargo, Bismarck and Minot, Ranum said.
Monoclonal antibody treatment hasn’t yet received full approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, but because of its promise, was given an emergency use authorization in late November 2020.
Julie O’Leary said she worried at first whether it was a “guinea pig thing” due to its experimental status, but that faded after she learned more.
“I just felt confident,” she said.
The treatment can be given to people 65 and older who test positive for COVID-19, and to those 55 and older who test positive and also have heart disease, high blood pressure or certain lung conditions.
However, it’s not appropriate for people who are already hospitalized or are needing increased supplemental oxygen.
In that situation, it’s a matter of too little, too late, Ranum said.
People 12 and older who have additional risk factors, including obesity, kidney disease, diabetes and weak immune systems may also benefit from the treatment, he said.
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Monoclonal antibody treatment is delivered intravenously in an outpatient hospital setting or infusion center.
The antibodies target the spike protein of the coronavirus molecule, decreasing the amount of virus in the body, Ranum said.
It helps buy time for the body’s own immune system to boot up and begin producing the same antibodies.
He draws similarities to convalescent plasma, which involves administering plasma from a person who’s recovered from COVID into someone who’s ill.
“This is basically a lab-derived drug to do the same thing,” Ranum said.
One stipulation of receiving the antibody treatment is that a person must wait 90 days before getting a COVID-19 vaccination.
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However, that shouldn’t prevent people from seeking the treatment, because if you're COVID positive and at risk for hospitalization, “you have a problem right now,” Ranum said.
The O’Learys aren’t certain how they contracted COVID-19, but think it may have happened when they flew to Las Vegas over the New Year’s holiday.
About 10 days later, on Sunday, Jan. 10, Bill started feeling nausea, fatigue and body aches.
Julie developed a dull headache and a small cough.
They both tested positive on Jan. 13 and received the one-time monoclonal antibody treatment the next day.
Bill said he’s glad his appetite is back, now that the nausea, aches and fatigue have subsided.
“I’m happy we did it, because that could go on for days and days,” he said.
For information about the nearest infusion center location, call NDDoH’s COVID-19 hotline at 866-207-2880, Monday-Friday, 8 a.m. – 5 p.m. and Saturday, 9 a.m. – 3 p.m.