Convalescent Plasma appears promising for COVID-19: Iranian study

18 May. 2020

Abdol Majid Cheraghali, professor at Baqiyatallah University of Medical Sciences in Iran, talked about "Management of COVID-19 Iranian Patients sing Convalescent Plasma" during the 7^th Science and Technology Exchange Program on May 18, 2020.

Cheraghali stated that "Convalescent Plasma (CP), or immune plasma, is plasma collected from an infected individual, such as from COVID-19 patients, then transfused into infected patients as a post-exposure prophylaxis."

CP is a passive antibody therapy that has shown some success as a neutralizing antibody against other coronavirus epidemics, such as MERS.

"Convalescent blood products (CBP) are obtained from collecting whole blood or plasma from a patient who has survived a previous infection and has developed humoral immunity against the pathogen responsible for the disease," Cheraghali remarked.

"The transfusion of CBP can neutralize the pathogen and eventually lead to its eradication from the blood circulation through pathogen-specific antibodies," he added.

Cheraghali stated that this method is not new and was used in 1880s-90s to treat many bacterial and viral infections such as diphtheria, scarlet fever, Pertussis, the Spanish influenza, etc.

He maintained that the key advantage to this therapy is that "this treatment is provided by people who have been infected and is available immediately. It is also cost-effective for resource-limited medical centers. Moreover, if it is infused at the proper time, it may prevent the patient from reaching the severe stage of the disease and reduce the possibility of hospitalization and ICU."

FDA authorized the use of Convalescent Plasma as a potentially effective treatment of the patients on April 13, 2020 for managing COVID-19 patients.

EU also issued a program for the collection and use of Convalescent Plasma in COVID-19 pandemic. It is stated that "the use of Convalescent Plasma for prophylactic treatment of 'at-risk' populations is also a possibility in the future."

According to Cheraghali, "the studies show that the earlier the plasma infusion, the better the chance of prevention of severe stages of the disease. If we want to get the best results we must do the therapy as soon as possible; otherwise, it will be nearly useless. Transfusion before 7 days of patients' admission is suggested because the late infusion will reduce its efficacy."

Some of the requirements for CP therapy include donors who have recovered from COVID-19, blood banking facilities to process and store donated plasma, virologic lab facilities, therapeutic protocols to assess the efficacy of any intervention and measure immune responses, and regulatory compliance including institutional review board approval.

Cheraghali remarked that these findings are obtained from observing “50 severely and critically ill patients hospitalized in Iran.”

This is the largest case series reporting the use of Convalescent Plasma in COVID-19 patients.

"These findings suggest that administration of Convalescent Plasma is safe and improves clinical outcomes."

News Source: MSTF Media