Treatment of patients with Covid-19 with a high dose of ulinastatin

Currently, there are no specific therapeutic agents available for the treatment of coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19). The present study aimed to assess the efficacy of high-dose ulinastatin for the treatment of patients with Covid-19. A total of 12 patients hospitalized with confirmed severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 infection were treated with a high dose of ulinastatin alongside standard care. Changes in clinical manifestations, laboratory examinations and chest images were retrospectively analyzed. A total of 10 patients with severe Covid-19 and two patients with moderate Covid-19 received ulinastatin treatment. The average age of the patients was 68.0±11.9 years (age range, 48-87 years). In total, nine of the 12 patients (75.0%) had one or more comorbidities. The most common symptoms on admission were fever (8/12, 66.7%), cough (5/12, 41.7%) and dyspnea (5/12, 41.7%). The percentage of lymphocytes was decreased in 41.7% of patients (5/12) and 58.3% of patients (7/12) had elevated hypersensitive C-reactive protein (CRP) levels (mean, 49.70±77.70 mg/l). The white blood cell levels and the percentage of lymphocytes returned to normal in all of the patients, and CRP was significantly decreased and returned to normal in 83.3% of patients (10/12; mean, 6.87±6.63 mg/l) on day 7 after ulinastatin treatment. Clinical symptoms were relieved synchronously. The peripheral oxygen saturation improved and 66.7% of the patients (8/12) did not require further oxygen therapy 7 days after ulinastatin treatment. No patients required intensive care unit admission or mechanical ventilation. All patients revealed different degrees of absorption of pulmonary lesions after treatment. Compared with the standard care group, ulinastatin treatment significantly prevented illness deterioration. In conclusion, these preliminary data revealed that high-dose ulinastatin treatment was safe and exhibited a potential beneficial effect for patients with Covid-19.