Plasma therapy is safe and supports three-quarters of patients, according to Methodist study

According to the first US study published on the use of 100-year-old therapies for deadly pandemics, more than three-quarters of 25 severely ill Houston Methodist COVID-19 patients were from people who recovered from the disease. Improved after receiving plasma.

A preliminary report by the Methodist research team found no adverse side effects. We conclude that what is called convalescent serum therapy is a safe treatment option for patients with illness caused by new coronaviruses circulating in the world. The report has not been peer reviewed yet.

It is not known if patients improved without treatment, so the report needed a clinical trial comparing patients receiving plasma therapy with those receiving placebo or standard treatment.

The largest study to assess treatment use in patients with COVID-19 is study leader Dr. James Masser returned to the Chronicle with 30 of the first 50 patients treated returning home It will take place two weeks later. He then said he would submit the results to the journal shortly.

Relation: Outcome after plasma transfusion in Methodist COVID patients

At the end of March, the Methodist received attention for treatment when a team of doctors, along with a team at Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York City, became the first US hospital to transfuse recovered patient plasma to patients. That night, two patients transfused with Methodist recovered and were discharged.

This treatment is based on the well-supported idea of ​​laboratory studies that transfusing plasma from patients who have recovered from the virus enhances its healing power. Such plasma contains antibodies made by the immune system to attack the infection.

First used in the 1918 Spanish flu and finally used in Ebola, this treatment became one of the promising treatments for COVID-19, affecting more than 1.4 million Americans and 84,000 people. The above died. It has been given to thousands of COVID-19 US patients as researchers look for weapons against new infectious diseases.

The Methodist study included 25 patients, all on oxygen support. Seven days after receiving plasma therapy, nine improved and seven were sufficient to be discharged. By 14 days, 10 more had improved and 4 were enough to be discharged.

The report does not mention the number of patients on the ventilator commonly used for the most morbidly ill patients with COVID-19. According to one recent study, 39% of such patients die from supportive care alone.

Relation: First Houston Methodist to Use COVID-19 Plasma Transfusion Therapy in the US

The methodist said any randomized trials that might be performed should evaluate participants based on variables such as timing of transfusions, number and amount of transfusions, and antibody levels in donor plasma.

trial, Report posted to preprint server medRxiv
Represents approximately one-third of the severe COVID-19 patients treated by Methodist to date. Of those 74, 50 have been discharged from the hospital and are recovering. Authorities say that more than 150 people infected with COVID-19 have administered plasma as a methodist, many of whom continue to make frequent donations.

Methodist is just one of the Houston area hospitals that provide treatment. The Memorial Hermann Health System at Baylor St Luke’s Medical Center and the Texas Medical Center also transfused a large number of COVID-19 patients, and the Gulf Coast Regional Blood Center promoted transfusion to 12 regional hospitals two weeks ago. doing.

of Center Looking for additional donors as part of a partnership with Baylor College of Medicine Brings plasma transfusions to more COVID-19 patients In the Houston area.

Nationwide, Mayo Clinic leads clinical trials in more than 2,000 hospitals where all patients are treated. The Johns Hopkins University is conducting a small study that randomly assigns patients to receive either plasma or placebo.