Elimination or Prolongation of ACE Inhibitors and ARB in Coronavirus Disease 2019 (REPLACECOVID)

April 7, 2021 updated by: Julio A. Chirinos, University of Pennsylvania

The Randomized Elimination or Prolongation of Angiotensin Converting Enzyme Inhibitors and Angiotensin Receptor Blockers in Coronavirus Disease 2019

The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the virus responsible for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), is associated with a high incidence of acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) and death. Hypertension and cardiovascular disease are risk factors for death in COVID-19. Angiotensin converting enzyme 2 (ACE2), an important component of the renin-angiotensin system, serves as the binding site of SARS-CoV-2 and facilitates host cell entry in the lungs. In experimental models, angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEIs) and angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs) have been shown to increase ACE2 expression in several organs, potentially promoting viral cell invasion, although these findings are not consistent across studies. Alternatively, ACEIs and ARBs may actually improve mechanisms of host defense or hyperinflammation, ultimately reducing organ injury. Finally, ACEIs and ARBs may have direct renal, pulmonary and cardiac protective benefits in the setting of COVID-19. Therefore, it is unclear if ACEIs and ARBs may be beneficial or harmful in patients with COVID-19. Given the high prevalence of hypertension, cardiovascular and renal disease in the world, the high prevalence of ACEIs or ARBs in these conditions, and the clinical equipoise regarding the continuation vs. discontinuation of ACEIs/ARBs in the setting of COVID, a randomized trial is urgently needed. The aim of this trial is to assess the clinical impact of continuation vs. discontinuation of ACE inhibitors and angiotensin receptor blockers on outcomes in patients hospitalized with COVID-19.

Study Overview

Status

Completed

Conditions

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

152

Phase

  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

    • Pennsylvania
      • Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States, 19104
        • University of Pennsylvania Health System

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

18 years and older (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  1. Age 18 years or older
  2. Hospitalization with a suspected diagnosis of COVID-19, based on: (a) A compatible clinical presentation with a positive laboratory test for SARS-CoV-2, or (b) Considered by the primary team to be a Person Under Investigation due to undergo testing for COVID-19 in addition to compatible pulmonary infiltrates on chest x-ray (mutilobar, intersticial or ground glass opacities).
  3. Use of ACEI or ARB as an outpatient prior to hospital admission.

Exclusion Criteria:

  1. Systolic blood pressure <100 mmHg.
  2. Systolic blood pressure > 180 mmHg or >160 if unable to substitute ACEIs/ARBs for another antihypertensive class, per the investigator's discretion.
  3. Diastolic blood pressure > 110 mmHg
  4. Known history of heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (EF <40%) on their most recent echo and/or clinical heart failure with unknown EF (i.e. no echo in approximately the past year).
  5. Serum K>5.0 mEq/L on admission.
  6. Known pregnancy or breastfeeding.
  7. eGFR <30 mL/min/1.73m2
  8. >50% increase in creatinine (to a creatinine >1.5 mg/dl) compared to most recent creatinine in the past six months, if available
  9. Urine protein-to-creatitine ratio > 3 g/g or proteinuria > 3 g/24-hours within the past year
  10. Ongoing treatment with aliskiren or sacubitril-valsartan.
  11. Inability to obtain informed consent from patient.
  12. Inability to read and write or lack of access to a smart phone, computer or tablet device at the time of evaluation.

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Single

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Discontinuation arm
The randomized intervention will be the discontinuation of ACEI/ARBs
The randomized intervention will be the discontinuation of ACEI/ARBs. In all participants randomized to discontinuation, treating clinicians will be reminded about the medication discontinuation upon discharge and will be prompted to consider re-initiation of the medication at that time if appropriate, per the clinician's discretion.
Experimental: Continuation arm
The randomized intervention will be the continuation of ACEI/ARBs
The randomized intervention will be the continuation of ACEI/ARBs at the doses previously prescribed for patients during their routine care. Clinicians will be encouraged to continue the randomized treatment but will be allowed to change the dose of ACEI/ARB or discontinue these medications if any compelling clinical reasons are identified (such as hypotension, hyperkalemia, acute kidney injury).

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Hierarchical Composite Endpoint
Time Frame: Up to 28 days

The primary endpoint of the trial will be a global rank based on patient outcomes according to four factors: (1) time to death, (2) the number of days supported by invasive mechanical ventilation or extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO), (3) the number of days supported by renal replacement therapy or pressor/inotropic therapy, and (4) a modified sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) score. The modified SOFA score will include the cardiac, respiratory, renal and coagulation domains of the SOFA score.

How to interpret the rank?: patients are ranked from worst to best outcomes, such that patients with bad outcomes are ranked at the top and patients who have the best outcomes are ranked at the bottom.

Up to 28 days

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
All-Cause Death
Time Frame: Up to 28 days
Up to 28 days
Length of Hospital Stay
Time Frame: Up to 28 days
This outcome measurement looked at the median length of hospitalization.
Up to 28 days
Length of ICU Stay, Invasive Mechanical Ventilation or Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation
Time Frame: Up to 28 days
Up to 28 days
AUC SOFA
Time Frame: Up to 28 days

The Area Under the Curve of the modified SOFA (AUC SOFA) from daily measurements, weighted to account for the shorter observation period among patients who die in-hospital.

How to interpret the AUC SOFA?: a higher area indicates more severe disease and/or longer hospitalization.The range is 0.1 to 377.3.

Up to 28 days

Other Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Intensive Care Unit Admission or Respiratory Failure Requiring Mechanical Ventilation.
Time Frame: Up to 28 days
Need to be transferred to an intensive care unit or to supported by a breathing machine
Up to 28 days
Hypotension Requiring Vasopressors, Inotropes or Mechanical Hemodynamic Support
Time Frame: Up to 28 days
Hypotension Requiring Vasopressors, inotropes or mechanical hemodynamic support (ventricular assist device or intra-aortic balloon pump).
Up to 28 days

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Collaborators

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

March 31, 2020

Primary Completion (Actual)

August 20, 2020

Study Completion (Actual)

August 20, 2020

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

April 1, 2020

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

April 7, 2020

First Posted (Actual)

April 8, 2020

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

April 9, 2021

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

April 7, 2021

Last Verified

April 1, 2021

More Information

Terms related to this study

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

No

IPD Plan Description

Not making it available

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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