Convalescent plasma therapy doesn't stop COVID-19 progression: NIH
The results of a clinical trial showed that convalescent plasma therapy is not effective against high-risk COVID-19 patients. The trial—funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), US Department of Health and Human Services—was stopped in February as it failed to prevent the progression of the infection as expected. Principal investigator Clifton Callaway said the therapy reduces the risk by just less than 2%.
Results surprising; expected therapy to make huge difference: Callaway
Stating that the trial results were "surprising," Callaway said, "As physicians, we wanted this to make a big difference in reducing severe illness and it did not." Notably, the NIH is funding more such studies to get conclusive evidence on the treatment's efficacy in the faster recovery of COVID-19 patients. The studies are being conducted on patients who are hospitalized or recovering at home.
What is convalescent plasma therapy?
Convalescent plasma therapy is a treatment that was used widely for COVID-19 patients. The treatment uses a blood component called plasma, rich in virus-fighting antibodies, from recovered COVID-19 patients to aid the immune system in fighting off the infection in another patient. At the beginning of the pandemic, it was believed that plasma therapy would help hasten the recovery of COVID-19 patients.
India removed plasma therapy as COVID-19 treatment this May
India had removed convalescent plasma therapy from its recommended treatment guidelines for COVID-19 in May. The move came after the AIIMS-ICMR National Task Force found the treatment to be ineffective and inappropriate. A trial conducted by the ICMR last September had found that the therapy did not prevent progression to severe disease or reduce the number of deaths even with 28 days of treatment.
Experts warned against use of plasma therapy
Earlier, health experts in India had also warned the Centre to exercise caution against the "irrational and non-scientific use" of convalescent plasma in treating COVID-19 patients. A group of 18 top doctors cited three major studies against the use of plasma: the ICMR-PLACID Trial, the University of Oxford's Recovery Trial, and the PlasmAr Trial. All these studies found no benefit of plasma treatment.
