Samaritan – OSU Research for COVID-19 Treatment
COVID-19 has had a dramatic impact on the world. We
at Samaritan Health Services want to contribute to the search for adequate
treatment options for this illness.
In collaboration with scientists from Oregon State
University, we have identified that a common supplement called inosine may be
beneficial in treating this virus. Weightlifters use inosine is primarily to
boost strength. However, inosine has been studied in several diseases, and
specifically has been shown to have some small benefit in respiratory viral
infections such as influenza.
COVID-19 infection appears to have two phases:
- The first phase is the milder presentation, which runs similar to many viral infections, where patients may feel a bit flu-like without feeling severely ill. Many patients recover while in this first phase.
- The second phase is what often leads to hospitalization and the need to be put on ventilators. It is felt that this second phase is primarily driven by an overreactive immune system, or, in other words, there is too much inflammation.
There is reason to believe that inosine
may be able to impact the disease in both of these phases.
We are conducting a study in patients who have
developed COVID-19 infection but who are not so sick that they are in the hospital. This study will compare the effect of inosine taken three times daily compared
to a placebo for 2 weeks.
If you are eligible and choose to participate in this
study, you can expect the following:
- We will ask you to get a blood draw on the first day, and then one and two weeks later, for three total blood draws.
- You will receive a bottle of pills in the mail. These will either be inosine or placebo. You will be asked to take two pills three times a day.
- You will need to keep a symptom diary recording such information as whether you have a fever, cough, shortness of breath, diarrhea or no symptoms at all.
- You will be contacted weekly by the research team for three weeks.
It is important to emphasize that inosine has never
been studied in the treatment of this novel coronavirus, so there is no
guarantee that it will help. It is possible that inosine could make your illness worse, although we think that is very unlikely.
Thank you for your interest in this study. If you
have been diagnosed with COVID-19 and you are interested in participating in
this study, please click the link below. This will take you to the study
consent form, where there will be some additional details that you need to
know. Clicking this link will also inform the research team of your interest
and they will contact you again to see if you have any further questions. The
sooner you can get on this treatment, the better.
If you are interested in participating, we would love to hear from you. Please fill out and submit this form, and we will reach out to you.
If you are still uncertain, and have additional
questions, please feel free to call the number below.