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, sO₂ 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.