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Coping with COVID: Study finds that blood plasma from patients post-COVID-19 can help treat others

A large study which involved infusing COVID-19 patients with convalescent plasma from individuals who recovered, showed that the transfusion had a marked effect on mortality for patients with severe cases.

A study involving over 35,000 patients with COVID-19 showed improvement among severe patients after they were infused with blood plasma from individuals who had recovered from the virus.

The study was conducted by the Mayo Clinic and sponsored by the National Institutes of Health.

However, the study’s lack of a placebo group left several experts struggling to interpret the data, reports STAT Health.

Nationwide, the study found that when the convalescent plasma had been quickly administered, the positive effect on mortality for patients was noticeably higher.

Patients who received transfusions within three days of diagnosis had a seven-day death rate of 8.7%, while patients who got plasma after four or more days had a mortality rate of 11.9%, reports STAT Health.

Nonetheless, without a large sample of placebo group participants for comparison, it’s unclear how valuable the treatment really is.

Peter Bach, director of Memorial Sloan Kettering’s Center for Health Policy and Outcomes, said there’s no way to be sure about the ultimate benefit of convalescent plasma, but the study “checks a few boxes,” reports STAT Health.

Bach said that, overall, it is likely that convalescent plasma might help some patients. Bach also said that researchers also found that the quality of the plasma infusion had an effect on patient outcomes, as those who got infusions that were particularly rich with antibodies fared better overall.