Carrie Levinson, MSLIS (She/her/hers)
Reference & Instruction Librarian, Mount Sinai West & Mount Sinai Morningside
Affect is a grassroots organization that aims to “amplify multiply-marginalized folx and embody disability justice.” Founded in July 2015 by disability justice advocate, community organizer, and letter artist Elea Chang, the organization previously focused on a two-day conference examining various aspects of social change. Affect’s current focus is putting together media campaigns and community resources. Their featured campaign is a project called “Disabled and Here”.
This project showcases freely available stock photos and images of disabled Black, Indigenous, people of color (BIPOC). The images show people with a variety of diagnoses, body sizes, body types, sexual orientations, and gender identities. Unlike many other media portrayals of disability, the project is led by the community it represents. In addition to the photos, which have themes of Community, LGBTQ+, Everyday Living, and Social Justice, there is also an interview series with many of the subjects/collaborators.
Six disabled people of color smile and pose in front of a concrete wall. Five people stand in the back, with the Black woman in the center holding up a chalkboard sign reading "disabled and here." A South Asian person in a wheelchair sits in front. Photo from Disabled and Here, licensed under CC-BY 4.0.
Disabled and Here can be a resource for those who want to have an alternative to traditional visual portrayals of disability.
Each month Levy Library showcases the achievements of Mount Sinai faculty and researchers by highlighting an article and its altmetrics. Altmetrics are alternative measures of impact that capture non-traditional data like abstract views, article downloads, and social media activity. Our altmetrics data is provided by the PlumX platform.
This month we highlight A neutralizing monoclonal antibody for hospitalized patients with Covid-19. This article was written in part by Annetine C Gelijns PhD.
CITATION
N Engl J Med 2021; 384:905-914
BACKGROUND
LY-CoV555, a neutralizing monoclonal antibody, has been associated with a decrease in viral load and the frequency of hospitalizations or emergency department visits among outpatients with coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19). Data are needed on the effect of this antibody in patients who are hospitalized with Covid-19.
METHODS
In this platform trial of therapeutic agents, we randomly assigned hospitalized patients who had Covid-19 without end-organ failure in a 1:1 ratio to receive either LY-CoV555 or matching placebo. In addition, all the patients received high-quality supportive care as background therapy, including the antiviral drug remdesivir and, when indicated, supplemental oxygen and glucocorticoids. LY-CoV555 (at a dose of 7000 mg) or placebo was administered as a single intravenous infusion over a 1-hour period. The primary outcome was a sustained recovery during a 90-day period, as assessed in a time-to-event analysis. An interim futility assessment was performed on the basis of a seven-category ordinal scale for pulmonary function on day 5.
RESULTS
On October 26, 2020, the data and safety monitoring board recommended stopping enrollment for futility after 314 patients (163 in the LY-CoV555 group and 151 in the placebo group) had undergone randomization and infusion. The median interval since the onset of symptoms was 7 days (interquartile range, 5 to 9). At day 5, a total of 81 patients (50%) in the LY-CoV555 group and 81 (54%) in the placebo group were in one of the two most favorable categories of the pulmonary outcome. Across the seven categories, the odds ratio of being in a more favorable category in the LY-CoV555 group than in the placebo group was 0.85 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.56 to 1.29; P=0.45). The percentage of patients with the primary safety outcome (a composite of death, serious adverse events, or clinical grade 3 or 4 adverse events through day 5) was similar in the LY-CoV555 group and the placebo group (19% and 14%, respectively; odds ratio, 1.56; 95% CI, 0.78 to 3.10; P=0.20). The rate ratio for a sustained recovery was 1.06 (95% CI, 0.77 to 1.47).
CONCLUSIONS
Monoclonal antibody LY-CoV555, when coadministered with remdesivir, did not demonstrate efficacy among hospitalized patients who had Covid-19 without end-organ failure. (Funded by Operation Warp Speed and others; TICO ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT04501978. opens in new tab.)
View this article profile here!