New Delhi, July 31 : A drug designed to treat coeliac disease -- an autoimmune disorder primarily affecting the small intestine -- has shown promise for children affected with severe post-Covid syndrome, according to a small study.

Covid infection, although rare in kids, leads to multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) -- a serious condition that presents as high fevers, gastrointestinal symptoms, and life-threatening cardiac injury.

The trial results, published in the journal Science Translational Medicine, showed that larazotide supported children in returning to normal activities more rapidly following Covid.

"While our study is small, its results are powerful and have implications not only for MIS-C, but potentially for long Covid," said lead author Lael Yonker, co-director of the Cystic Fibrosis Center, at Mass General Brigham.

"Our findings suggest that larazotide is safe and quickly resolves symptoms in children with MIS-C. We are now running a clinical trial to test whether larazotide may also be a useful therapy to treat patients with long Covid," Yonker added.

Current MIS-C treatments are limited. Some patients receive general anti-inflammatory drugs, but many experience a rebound of symptoms after completing a course. Such drugs are not designed to target the sticky SARS-CoV-2 viral particles that may persist in the gut.

On the other hand is the orally administered Larazotide, which targets the gut and strengthens intestinal barriers to limit the number of materials -- like SARS-CoV-2 viral particles -- that exit the intestines and enter circulation.

To test larazotide's efficacy and safety as an MIS-C treatment, researchers conducted a double-blind clinical trial with 12 children experiencing early-stage MIS-C.

Each patient randomly received either a placebo or larazotide four times daily for 21 days, then was tracked over six months of recovery.

Children who received larazotide showed faster resolution of gastrointestinal symptoms, faster clearance of SARS-CoV-2 viral particles, and more rapid return to normal activities, the team said.

/IANS