COVID-19: Convalescent plasma
Convalescent plasma from COVID-19 survivors did not significantly improve outcomes in patients with active disease, according to a JAMA study. Some 100 Chinese adults with severe or life-threatening COVID-19 were randomized, at a median 30 days after symptom onset, to receive a transfusion of convalescent plasma in addition to standard care, or standard care alone. (Severe disease included patients in respiratory distress, while life-threatening disease included those with organ failure or requiring mechanical ventilation). The rate of clinical improvement within 28 days did not differ significantly between the treatment groups (52% with plasma, 43% without). Mortality and time to discharge also did not differ significantly. The researchers note that the trial may have been underpowered to detect a treatment benefit. Editorialists, meanwhile, see “an important signal of possible benefit” in a subanalysis of patients with severe (vs. life-threatening) disease.
Convalescent plasma findings in JAMA