The Librarian

I read about a trial of using convalescent plasma therapy, is it working? The article I read didn't show results yet

혈장 치료로 2명 완치...정부, 곧 치료지침 발표 It has emerged that two elderly coronavirus patients in South Korea made a full recovery after receiving blood plasma treatment. Health authorities say plasma treatment guidelines will be announced within days. Kim Hyo-sun reports. South Korean researchers have proved the effectiveness of blood plasma treatment on coronavirus patients. Doctors at Yonsei Severance Hospital in Seoul administered plasma therapy on two elderly coronavirus patients,... a 67-year-old woman and a 71-year-old man. They were treated with plasma from people who had recovered and have developed antibodies to the virus,... enabling their bodies to protect themselves from the virus' attacks. One of the patients was discharged after making a full recovery,... while the other is set to be sent home soon. "The patients continued to suffer from acute respiratory distress syndrome even after antiviral treatment. Then we decided to go with plasma treatment in combination with steroids." Plasma is a yellowish blood fluid you get from centrifuging blood. It carries various nutrients including protein as well as antibodies. Antibodies,... which are Y-shaped proteins produced by the immune system,... stop intruders from harming the body. These invaders, called antigens,... can be viruses, bacteria, or other chemicals. Antibodies also enable macrophages to engulf viruses and bacteria. The South Korean government says it will soon provide detailed guidelines for the treatment,... which was also used to treat patients during the MERS outbreak. "The guidelines for plasma treatment are nearly done, and we will swiftly commence research on other means of treatment." For now, it's crucial to secure enough plasma from people who have fully recovered from COVID-19. The government also needs to prepare for possible side-effects as no large-scale clinical trials have been conducted yet. Kim Hyo-sun, Arirang News.

Last week, the FDA tapped the Mayo Clinic to lead and coordinate the effort and evaluate the treatment’s effectiveness.

Since then, hospital systems around the nation have registered through the Mayo Clinic to start treating patients with convalescent plasma. Texas hospitals that plan to try the treatment include Methodist Hospital Stone Oak in San Antonio, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas and the Baylor College of Medicine in Houston.

Five patients at Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Center in Houston — part of the Baylor College of Medicine — have been treated with convalescent plasma, said Dr. Ashok Balasubramanyam, vice president of academic integration and associate dean of academic affairs at the Baylor College of Medicine. The school has also been authorized to conduct a clinical trial, expected to start within a couple of weeks.

On Thursday, a patient in Austin received a convalescent plasma infusion, the first in the city, said Dr. Jeff Yorio, a hematologist and oncologist at Texas Oncology who helped get the program started in Austin.