eFM News

Plasma taken from the blood of people who
have recovered from the coronavirus and given to people sick with the disease does not
reduce their chances of getting seriously ill or dying, according to new research.

The findings, published in the medical journal BMJ on Friday, are from one of the first clinical trials to report the effects of convalescent plasma, which has been given emergency approval in countries including India and the United States.

It concluded that "convalescent plasma showed limited effectiveness" as a potential treatment for patients with moderate COVID-19, particularly in places where laboratory capacity is limited.

But the researchers said future studies could explore using only plasma with high levels of neutralizing antibodies to see if this might be more effective.

Their work was funded by the Indian Council of Medical Research and conducted across India.

With few useful treatments and no cure or vaccine, nations are scrambling to find ways to reduce mortality or the severity of novel coronavirus infections.

The results were greeted with caution by some, including Britain's National Health Service, which is in the process of carrying out large, randomized control trials of convalescent plasma.

An NHS spokesman said, "There is other promising evidence that convalescent plasma transfusions with high antibody levels could improve patient outcomes."