Researchers sought to clarify the safety as well as the efficacy of tocilizumab (the anti–interleukin-6 receptor antibody) in patients from underserved and racial and ethnic minority populations who were hospitalized with coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pneumonia. Patients hospitalized with Covid-19 pneumonia who were not receiving mechanical ventilation were randomized (in a 2:1 ratio) to receive standard care plus one or two doses of either tocilizumab (8 mg per kilogram of body weight intravenously) or placebo. Mechanical ventilation or death by day 28 was the primary outcome. Findings revealed that a decrease in the probability of progression to the composite outcome of mechanical ventilation or death was conferred by treatment with tocilizumab in hospitalized patients with Covid-19 pneumonia who were not receiving mechanical ventilation, however, tocilizumab failed to improve survival. In addition, there were no new safety signals. Source
