US drug manufacturer Alexion is sending free medicine to Germany to help doctors battling the most severe cases in the current E. coli outbreak. But the extent to which Eculizumab can help remains unclear.
There is no effective treatment for E. coli patients who are currently suffering from epileptic seizures, kidney failure or strokes. So far, doctors in Germany have primarily used dialysis in an attempt to remove the bacterial toxins from the body as they seek to treat the widespread outbreak of a particularly deadly version of the E. Coli bacteria.
For several days now, hospitals have been experimenting with a largely untested drug called Eculizumab, which has the brand name Soliris. It remains unclear whether it can help.
The hope surrounding this remedy is largely due to the work of Dr. Franz Schäfer, a nephrologist at the University of Heidelberg. Last fall, the condition of one of his young patients, three-year-old Sophie, was getting progressively worse. The girl was infected with E. coli, suffering from seizures and hemiplegia, and blood plasma exchanges offered no improvement.
"Finally, we placed all our hopes on one possible solution and gave her Eculizumab," Schäfer says.
The drug is known among kidney researchers, but has been neither tested nor approved for treating E. coli infections. Schäfer was surprised at how well young Sophie responded: Within 24 hours, the girl's condition had improved dramatically. After three days, dialysis was no longer necessary, and after nine days Sophie was discharged from the hospital.
"I'm still in touch with the family," says Schäfer. "Sophie is attending preschool just like any other child her age."
SPIEGEL
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