Convalescent Plasma

The NIH announced that it is ending a clinical trial evaluating the safety and effectiveness of COVID-19 convalescent plasma in ED patients with mild to moderate symptoms.

November 2020 was a grim time for COVID-19 in the United States, marking the beginning of a brand-new wave of infections fueled by holiday get-togethers that triggered an explosion of cases.

Recruitment for the convalescent plasma arm of the RECOVERY trial was closed after an independent board determined there was no evidence the treatment benefited patients with COVID-19, according to the trial’s chief investigators.

Among hospitalized patients with COVID-19 who were not on mechanical ventilation, receiving high-titer convalescent plasma was associated with a lower risk for death than receiving plasma with lower antibody levels, researchers reported.

Over 40% of patients with severe COVID-19 improved within a week of convalescent plasma infusion, with more than 50% alive and discharged by 28 days, according to a study presented at the virtual ASH Annual Meeting and Exposition.

The Healio editors have compiled a list of the most-read pulmonology news published in November.

An inside look at how Johns Hopkins University’s COVID-19 dashboard — which is frequently cited by the media, public health and government officials to illustrate COVID-19’s impact in the United States — obtains and presents data, was one of the top stories in infectious disease last week. 

Researchers reported recently in The BMJ that convalescent plasma was not associated with a reduction in progression to severe COVID-19 or all-cause mortality in adults with moderate disease.

Results from a small case series provided preliminary evidence that convalescent plasma therapy appears to be a safe and effective late-stage treatment for patients with COVID-19 infection.

COVID-19 antibodies in convalescent plasma began to disappear in donations made 3 to 4 months after symptom onset, according to results of a longitudinal analysis published in Blood.