More monoclonal antibodies needed immediately, say West Virginia hospital & health department

CHARLESTON, W.Va. (WV News) — Charleston Area Medical Center and the Kanawha County Health Department put out a plea for more monoclonal antibodies Friday.

"CAMC and the KCHD need to be allotted an increasing amount of monoclonals immediately. Unless we receive more monoclonal antibody, we will have to turn away people in need of this life-saving treatment," the hospital and health agency said in a news release. "This is important to the patients who need the treatment, as well as the hospitals throughout the state who are struggling to have enough beds to care for our communities."

Monoclonal antibodies are laboratory-made and mimic natural antibodies to limit the amount of virus in your body. Supplies are distributed by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

Treatment with monoclonal antibodies helps patients who are at risk of developing severe COVID-19 and becoming hospitalized with the virus, officials said. In addition to helping keep people out of the hospital, the treatments have reduced the number of patients requiring ICU care and has reduced deaths from COVID-19, officials said.

Read more: https://www.wvnews.com/news/wvnews/more-monoclonal-antibodies-needed-immediately-say-west-virginia-hospital-health-department/article_8a250eec-22c7-11ec-9020-93bef5f932d4.html