For Dr. Edward Michelson, making a meaningful difference in society isn’t just a token philosophy—it’s what drives his work every single day in the fight against COVID-19.
As Chair of Emergency Medicine at Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center El Paso, he strives to help residents and faculty members alike feel that they are making a true difference in the medical field.
And he’s not afraid to lead by example. He’s the brain behind a localized trial, studying the effects of the anti-inflammatory drug cromolyn sodium on hospital patients with COVID-19. Historically used to treat asthma, the drug is known to reduce lung inflammation.
Michelson is hoping the use of cromolyn sodium on COVID-19 patients will help speed up recovery and prevent cases from growing worse.
“We are enrolling patients with COVID-19, who have been admitted to the hospital because they require oxygen,” Michelson said. “We're treating them with the cromolyn sodium. They receive four days of nebulization treatments, which is something you would use in asthmatics, and this is to deliver the medication into the lungs where a lot of the injury from COVID takes place.”
The trial, which is entering its second phase, is seeking to enroll 50 patients in a randomized double-blind study. Half of the patients will receive the active drug—the other a placebo.
If proven effective, Michelson says the findings could help COVID-19 patients on an international scale, due to both the ease of access and general affordability of the drug.
“This is a very inexpensive, generic medication that will help particularly those areas with less resources than we have here in the United States,” Michelson said. “It could be easily deployed, it's easily given, and has great potential to help a lot of people because of its accessibility.”
A portion of a 1.7 million dollar grant from the National Institutes of Health is being used to support the trial.
Michelson says TTUHSC El Paso will continue to conduct research on a variety of perspective COVID-19 treatment options.
“I think it's great that we can do research, cutting edge research, on an important disease like COVID-19 here in the borderland, and we hope to bring even more studies,” Michelson said. “We have participated in other trials, one of a new medication for treating COVID pneumonia that had very positive results.”
Helping the borderland community through the pandemic is a top priority for Michelson, who says local initiatives like research and public health education efforts can make a true difference.
“It really gives us a great sense of purpose that we can be a part of helping the community,” Michelson said. “Helping to educate individuals about the disease, encouraging important practices like getting vaccinated, safe practices, wearing your mask, and then to also be able to participate in cutting edge research kind of rounds out the picture.”
Michelson hopes to have results from the cromolyn sodium trial this spring.
