Following a sudden increase in mortality rates by government hospitals across the province, the Punjab government has approved the use of the life-saving drug, Actimara, to treat critically ill patients.
400 mg injection drug. An antilocine-6 inhibitor, commonly known as tacrolimus - will be recommended for patients with lung complications and abnormal levels of IL-6 in the blood. IL-6 is an endogenous chemical that causes inflammation.
'Each dose of medicine (injection) costs Rs 60,000 and will be given twice in a lifetime to patients undergoing treatment in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU), ' a senior government official told media.
He said that this decision was taken in a meeting convened by Punjab Health Minister Dr Yasmeen Rashid on Wednesday.
The health department has allowed all teaching hospitals in Lahore to purchase 20 doses of medicines.
The conference meeting was composed of Vice-Chancellors of Medical Universities, Principals of Medical Colleges, officials from the administration's Corona Expert Advisory Group (CEAG), top pulmonologists, and experts of medication.
Dr. Asad Aslam Khan, Chief Executive of Mayo Hospital, Lahore, presented a study on the use of medicine in acute patients in ICUs.
He told the meeting that doctors had reported a recovery rate of 80 to 90 percent at his hospital after prescribing the drug to critically ill patients of Covid-19 when he was brought there with lung and severe pneumonia.
He said that one of the patients was an Associate Professor of Medicine at Government Shahdara Teaching Hospital, Lahore and the other was a personal staff officer of the Vice-Chancellor of King Edward Medical University.
Both Mayo was being treated at the hospital and the performance of the drug was promising to the extent that they have not only recovered but also left the ICU.
Heads of other medical institutions have endorsed the use of Actimara, saying their hospitals have used it to treat coronavirus patients.
The meeting of health professionals was informed that the number of 19 patients suffering from pneumonia is increasing day by day, as a result of which the death rate in Punjab has increased.
Another important decision taken at the meeting was to expand ICU facilities across the province.
Heads of educational institutions were asked to increase the capacity of beds in high dependency units and ICUs to counter the expected increase in the number of coronavirus patients in Punjab.
The chiefs were also advised to increase the number of ventilators to 200 by May 31 and 400 by the end of next month.
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