Utility of Low Doses of Corticosteroids and Cyclosporine Combined With Enoxaparin, in Patients With COVID-19 Pneumonia at the ISSSTE Regional Hospital, Puebla, During the Contingency Period Due to the SARS-Cov2 Pandemic

This is a pilot study done in a single center (ISSSTE Regional Hospital, Puebla, Mexico). Consecutive patients with suspected or confirmed diagnosis of COVID-19 were assigned, in an unblinded and non-randomized fashion, to receive either steroids plus CsA (intervention group) or steroids only (standard of treatment in this hospital, control group), as per individual clinical judgment. The primary outcome was the number of days to clinical improvement until hospital discharge or death. The secondary outcome was the improvement of patients, defined by the following parameters: lower oxygen requirements (2 liters per minute, or less), absence of fever by three consecutive days, respiratory rate <22, a decrease of 50% or more in the C reactive protein on admission, and length of hospital stay.

Adult patients attending to the hospital between April 15, to May 31, 2020, fulfilling symptoms compatible with COVID-19 pneumonia, according to the WHO guidance, were invited to participate and all the patients gave their written informed consent.