COVID-19 Convalescent Plasma No Benefit for Most Patients

THURSDAY, Feb. 3, 2022 (HealthDay News) -- For the typical patient, COVID-19 convalescent plasma (CCP) is not associated with clinical outcomes, according to a meta-analysis published online Jan. 25 in JAMA Network Open.

Andrea B. Troxel, Sc.D., from the NYU Grossman School of Medicine in New York City, and colleagues compiled individual patient data from randomized clinical trials of CCP and monitored the data in relation to clinical outcomes associated with CCP. Data were obtained from eight international trials, which enrolled 2,369 participants (1,138 randomly assigned to control and 1,231 randomly assigned to CCP). As of April 2021, primary outcome data were available for 2,341 participants.

The researchers found that the median of the World Health Organization (WHO) 11-point ordinal scale was 3 (cumulative odds ratio [OR], 0.94; 95 percent credible interval, 0.74 to 1.19; posterior probability of OR, <1, of 71 percent). Overall, 15 percent of the patients had a WHO score ≥7, capturing the most severe outcomes (OR, 0.94; 95 percent credible interval, 0.69 to 1.30; posterior probability of OR <1 of 65 percent). The ORs for mortality were 0.88 at day 14 (95 percent credible interval, 0.61 to 1.26; posterior probability of OR <1 of 77 percent) and 0.85 at day 28 (95 percent credible interval, 0.62 to 1.18; posterior probability of OR <1, 84 percent) after adjustment for baseline covariates. Across an array of baseline characteristics, there was heterogeneity of treatment effect sizes.

"Our results show that, overall, patients hospitalized with COVID-19 may derive modest benefit from convalescent plasma, with some patient subgroups benefiting more than others," Troxel said in a statement.

Several authors disclosed financial ties to the biopharmaceutical industry.

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