North Tees and Hartlepool hospitals first in the UK to use new Covid treatment

A team at the North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Foundation Trust has become the first in the UK to start using a new COVID-19 treatment on patients.

They'll be using REGN-COV2 – a new treatment made from a combination of monoclonal antibodies that specially targeting the virus.

The RECOVERY study as it's known has been taking place for several months and has already involved a range of tests into existing treatments used successfully for other conditions.

These include the use of a low dose of Dexamethasone, a commonly used antibiotic called Azithromycin, an anti-inflammatory known as Tocilizumab and convalescent plasma collected from donors who have recovered from the virus.

Those involved say this is a 'further reason' for people to be optimistic and hopeful when it comes to improving treatment for COVID-19.