Providing Expert Consultation in a World Living with COVID-19

After a welcome by Paolo Antonio Grossi, the appointed chair by the European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (ESCMID), Department of Medicine & Surgery, University of Insubria, Varese, Italy; Ann-Brit Eg Hansen, Department of Infectious Diseases, Copenhagen University Hospital – Amager and Hvidovre, Denmark and Department of Clinical Medicine, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Denmark, summarised the objectives of the meeting and introduced the speakers. In their opening presentation, Tobias Welte, Department of Pulmonary and Infectious Diseases, Hannover University School of Medicine, Germany, described how the COVID-19 pandemic has evolved, in terms of variants, mortality rates, vaccinations, immunity, and antivirals. Welte then presented a hypothetical case study to illustrate how older patients with comorbidities can initially have mild symptoms, but may then deteriorate and require hospitalisation. Stephen Thomas, State University of New York Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, USA, then described the efficacy and potential side effects of the BNT162b2 (Pfizer–BioNTech, New York City, USA, and Mainz, Germany, respectively) vaccine, and the need for, and benefits of, booster doses. Thomas also described the added benefits of the newer bivalent vaccines in a world where COVID-19 is constantly mutating. Marta Boffito, HIV, Sexual and Gender Health, Dermatology, Chelsea and Westminster Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, Imperial College London, UK, then outlined various factors that increase the risk of progression to severe COVID-19 disease, including older age, immunocompromised status, and underlying health conditions (e.g., obesity, hypertension, heart disease, and chronic kidney disease [CKD]). Such patients can benefit from antiviral medications such as nirmatrelvir/ritonavir, although potential drug–drug interactions must be considered. Roger Paredes, Department of Infectious Diseases and IrsiCaixa AIDS Research Institute, Hospital Universitari Germans Trias i Pujol, Badalona, Catalonia, Spain, and Center for Global Health and Diseases, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, Cleveland, Ohio, USA, revisited the case study to highlight the importance of early COVID-19 diagnosis among high-risk patients to enable the use of nirmatrelvir/ritonavir, which is only approved within 5 days of symptom onset for non-hospitalised adults at increased risk of progression to severe COVID-19. Paredes went on to discuss antiviral treatments in more detail, describing a randomised controlled trial (EPIC-HR) and two large real-world studies that showed that nirmatrelvir/ritonavir could significantly reduce the risk of hospitalisation and death due to COVID-19 among high-risk patients. To conclude, Hansen highlighted the importance of regular updates to COVID-19 management guidelines, given the ongoing and evolving nature of COVID-19, as well as the importance of identifying high-risk patients early in their disease course to enable the use of nirmatrelvir/ritonavir.