Life-saving effect of convalescent plasma treatment in covid-19 disease: Clinical trial from eastern Anatolia.

AIM

Convalescent Plasma (CP) therapy is of interest as no vaccine or specific treatment is available for emerging viruses such as severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 causing Covid-19. It was aimed to report the results of our patients who underwent CP in the treatment of Covid-19.

METHODS

CP treatment was applied to 26 Covid-19 patients in intensive care unit who had quantitative reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction positive Sars-Cov-2 infection. Plasma was collected at least 14 days after complete recovery from patients who had mild or moderate infection with Sars-Cov-2 infection. The collected CP (200cc) were applied to severe Covid-19 patients. Laboratory values of patients just before CP and after 7 days were compared.

RESULTS

There were no statistically significant differences in leukocyte, neutrophil, lymphocyte, platelet, CRP, ferritin, LDH, ALT, AST, sO and total bilirubin values just before and after 1 week of CP. A statistically significant difference was found between age and lymphocyte values of living and dying patients. The patients who died were determined to have older age (74,6 vs 61,85, p = 0,018) and more severe lymphopenia (0,47 vs 1,18, p = 0,001).

CONCLUSION

CP therapy has the potential to provide immediate and promising treatment options before specific vaccines and treatments are developed. In early stage Covid-19 patients who do not need mechanical ventilation, CP treatment may be a curative treatment option.