New test technique offers more secure measurements of hydroxychloroquine

LONDON: Researchers have built up another technique to measure levels of the medication of hydroxychloroquine in patients with the rheumatic infection foundational lupus erythematosus.

The technique developed by specialists at Uppsala University and Uppsala University Hospital in Sweden may likewise be valuable in different regions, for example, in the treatment of Covid-19.

Hydroxychloroquine was originally used to treat malaria but has also proven effective with SLE and rheumatoid arthritis (RA), the researchers said.

Today it is prescribed to all SLE patients since it ensures against flares of the ailment. Tests are currently being led to check whether it can likewise be utilized to treat Covid-19, they said.

A disadvantage of hydroxychloroquine is its side effects which can be avoided, however, if the dosage is adjusted for each patient. To achieve the protective effect against flares in SLE while also minimising the risk of side effects, researchers developed a method that can be used in the medical care system to measure hydroxychloroquine levels in the blood of SLE patients.

The method, described in the journal Arthritis Research and Therapy, is based on high-resolution mass spectrometry.

The researchers went through available data on hydroxychloroquine measurements.

They saw that results from measurements on whole blood, plasma and serum were not comparable with each other.

“It was indicated that there were significant contrasts between various reports, and there appeared to be huge individual contrasts,” said Kim Kultima, Associate Professor at Uppsala University.

They compared the levels of hydroxychloroquine in plasma, serum and whole blood in SLE patients.

The team concluded that the levels in whole blood were about twice as high as in serum and plasma. Whole blood analyses were also the most dependable.

“One striking outcome, and a significant understanding, was that levels in entire blood for patients recommended a similar measurement could vary by up to multiple times between people. This demonstrates a huge individual variety in how the drug is processed,” the specialists said.

One problem pointed out by the study is that the services for electronic information on medicinal products in Sweden (FASS) provides concentrations of hydroxychloroquine in plasma.

The researchers judge that these values provide an inaccurate and inappropriate picture for monitoring medication levels in patients.

“We also have to be very careful about drawing hasty conclusions about whether hydroxychloroquine is effective with Covid-19.

“What we cannot deny is that the examination strategy will ideally prompt better information for giving the correct doses to SLE patients who are endorsed the medicine,” the analysts said.

The team are planning to measure the levels of the medication in the blood of Covid-19 patients if the substance proves effective.

Credit:TimesOfIndia

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