UVA HEALTH: Trial to Test Convalescent Plasma as Potential COVID-19 Treatment
Plasma from recovered coronavirus patients, also known as convalescent plasma, has antibodies to COVID-19 that potentially could aid in treatment.
UVA Health issued the following announcement on May 4.
UVA Health is launching a clinical trial to test the effectiveness of using plasma from patients who have recovered from COVID-19 as a potential treatment for inpatients with the disease.
Inpatients at UVA who have tested positive for COVID-19 will be offered the opportunity to participate in the trial. Plasma from recovered patients, also known as convalescent plasma, has antibodies to COVID-19 that potentially could aid in treatment.
“Convalescent plasma has been used with success in other serious coronavirus infections such as SARS and MERS, and even in the recent Ebola virus outbreak,” said Dr. Scott Heysell, an infectious disease specialist at UVA Health and one of the lead investigators for the trial. “This option may boost the body’s own ability to coordinate an effective immune response to clearing the virus and preventing severe COVID-19 disease.”
Original source can be found here.
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