Beneficial effects of inhaled surfactant in patients with COVID-19-associated acute respiratory distress syndrome

Link to article at PubMed

Respir Med. 2021 May 29;185:106489. doi: 10.1016/j.rmed.2021.106489. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: We have investigated the use of nebulized surfactant as a potential therapeutic option for the patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)-associated acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) undergoing non-invasive ventilation.

METHODS: The patients were divided into 2 groups: surfactant (n = 33) and control (n = 32). The subjects in the surfactant group received the inhaled surfactant at daily dose of 150-300 mg. The oxygenation parameters and several clinical outcomes were analyzed.

RESULTS: On the 5 day of therapy, PaO2/FiO2 improved significantly in the surfactant group compared to the control group (184 (155-212) mmHg vs 150 (91-173) mmHg, p = 0.02). The inhaled surfactant significantly reduced the need for transfer of patients to intensive care units (24.2% vs 46.9%, p = 0.05) and invasive mechanical ventilation (18.2% vs 40.6%, p = 0.04). Even more, the nebulized surfactant shortened the length of non-invasive ventilation (7 (3-13) days vs 11 (5-22) days, p = 0.02) and time spent in hospital (18 (16-27) days vs 26 (21-31) days, p = 0.003) in patients suffering from COVID-19-linked ARDS.

CONCLUSIONS: Our preliminary data provided indications that inhaled surfactant therapy may represent a promising option for patients with COVID-19-associated ARDS. However, larger clinical trials are crucially needed.

PMID:34087610 | PMC:PMC8163691 | DOI:10.1016/j.rmed.2021.106489

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