FACT FINDERS: Pediatric monoclonal antibody treatments hard to find

TUCSON, Ariz. (KOLD News 13) - Some local doctors have been struggling to get the resources needed to treat children infected with COVID.

What works for an adult, is not always what is needed to treat a child. Many of the supplies and medications must be child-sized. Often, those supplies are not produced at as high of a rate as the adult versions. Dr. Sean Elliott with Tucson Medical Center says it has not been easy lately to find some things they need to treat our youngest patients.

”To get monoclonal antibody treatments for kids has been a little bit of a struggle just to find sources that are available,” he said.

Now, that struggle is getting worse as omicron surges. That is because Dr. Elliott says many antibody treatments are not effective against Omicron. There is one antibody treatment that does seem to work, sotrovimab, and there is a pediatric version. However, right now it is hard to get for anyone.

To learn more about this treatment for adults or children 12 years of age or older and weighing at least 88 pounds, click here.

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