A safety board temporarily halted a clinical trial that uses high-dose blood thinners in severe COVID-19 patients due to potential harm, reports The New York Times.
The monitoring board did not specify potential harms in its Dec. 22 statement, though high doses of anticoagulants are associated with increased bleeding, including in the gastrointestinal tract and inside the skull. Full-dose blood thinners have not reduced the need for organ support among critically ill patients, indicating the treatment offers no benefit.
The trial's leaders are now urgently trying to reach hospitals who may still be administering high-dose blood thinners to critical patients in belief that the risks outweigh benefits, according to the NYT.
Currently, the trial will continue only for hospitalized patients who are moderately ill, meaning they are not in intensive care, not on ventilators or at risk of organ failure. The trials leaders will continue monitoring data to determine whether severe patients can be enrolled again.
To read more about the trial, click here.