Timing of convalescent plasma therapy-tips from curing a 100-yearold COVID-19 patient using convalescent plasma treatment: A case report

BACKGROUND Convalescent plasma therapy is used for the treatment of critically ill patients for newly discovered infectious diseases,such as coronavirus disease 2019(COVID-19)pneumonia,under the premise of lacking specific treatment drugs and corresponding vaccines.But the best timing application of plasma therapy and whether it is effective by antiviral and antibiotic treatment remain unclear.CASE SUMMARY We describe a patient with COVID-19,a 100-year-old,high-risk,elderly male who had multiple underlying diseases such as stage 2 hypertension(very high-risk group)and infectious pneumonia accompanied by chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and emphysema.We mainly describe the diagnosis,clinical process,and treatment of the patient,including the processes of two plasma transfusion treatments.CONCLUSION This provides a reference for choosing the best timing of convalescent plasma treatment and highlights the effectiveness of the clinical strategy of plasma treatment in the recovery period of patients with COVID-19 pneumonia.

Convalescent plasma therapy in a pregnant COVID-19 patient with a dramatic clinical and imaging response: A case report

BACKGROUND Coronavirus disease 2019(COVID-19)is a novel very contagious infection which was designated a pandemic in all countries of the world in April 2020.Its presentation varies from mild to severe infection,but the majority of infected patients have mild manifestations.Many therapeutic choices have been suggested to treat the infection,but none are fully effective.CASE SUMMARY Herein we present a 26-year-old woman with a twin pregnancy at 36 wk and one day gestation with confirmed COVID-19 who responded dramatically to convalescent plasma therapy(CPT)and Favipiravir.CONCLUSION Although this case report shows the efficacy of CPT in addition to usual medications used for COVID-19,there are many questions that need to be answered regarding dosage,para-clinical efficacy,side effects and combination therapy.

Patients with Prolonged Positivity of SARS-CoV-2 RNA Benefit from Convalescent Plasma Therapy:A Retrospective Study

Convalescent plasma therapy has been implemented in a few cases of severe coronavirus disease 2019.No report about convalescent plasma therapy in treating patients with prolonged positivity of SARS-CoV-2 RNA has been published.In this study,we conducted a retrospective observational study in 27 patients with prolonged positivity of SARS-CoV-2 RNA,the clinical benefit of convalescent plasma therapy were analyzed.q RT-PCR test of SARS-CoV-2 RNA turned negative(B 7 days)in a part of patients(early negative group,n=15)after therapy,others(late negative group,n=12)turned negative in more than 7 days.Pulmonary imaging improvement was confirmed in 7 patients in early negative group and 8 in late negative group after CP therapy.Viral load decreased in early negative group compared with late negative group at day 3,5,7 after implementing convalescent plasma therapy.Patients in early negative group had a shorter median length of hospital stay.In conclusion,convalescent plasma therapy might help eliminate virus and shorten length of hospital stay in patients with prolonged positivity of SARS-CoV-2 RNA.

Utility of convalescent plasma for addressing the COVID-19 infection: brief review and case reports

Novel coronavirus,SARS-CoV-2 is responsible for causing a pandemic that has affected individuals worldwide,over 192 million people and about 4.1 million people died so far.The spread is ongoing and the numbers are still increasing.Numerous therapeutic approaches have been explored and developed during this pandemic.Immunotherapy with virus-specific antibodies in convalescent plasma(CP)has shown potential benefits for various pathogenic diseases.In many instances,it is the only available and safe management option for the COVID-19 patients.Here we describe two confirmed cases of COVID-19 from two different geographical areas that were managed with standard treatment modalities initially.Both of the patients were presented with high-grade fever,dry cough,and sore throat.Lab reports showed increased values of D-dimer,serum ferritin,leukocyte count(LC),Lactate dehydrogenase(LDH),and C-reactive protein(CRP).Chest X-ray showed bilateral infiltration(multifocal and bilateral ground-glass opacities and consolidations with peripheral and basal predominance),consistent with the previous reports on COVID-19 infection.The patients received conservative treatment according to the hospital's protocol.The convalescent plasma(from recovered patients)infusion was the last treatment given to both patients.After the convalescent plasma transfusion,both patients showed a reduction of viral load,an increase of anti-SARS-CoV-2 IgG and IgM antibodies,reduction in lung infiltration,with no adverse events.However,further randomized controlled trials are needed to investigate the full scope of safety and efficacy(both short and long-term)of convalescent plasma therapy for COVID-19 and other related infections.

Pandemic COVID-19:Current status and challenges of antiviral therapies

The pandemic COVID-19,caused by a new coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 infection,has infected over 12 million individuals and caused more than 55,200 death worldwide.Currently,there is no specific drug to treating this disease.Here we summarized the mechanisms of antiviral therapies and the clinic findings from different countries.Antiviral chemotherapies have been conducted by in multiple cohorts in different counties.Although FDA has fast approved remdesivir for treating COVID-19,it only speeds up recovery from COVID-19 with mildly reduced mortality.The chloroquine was suggested a potential drug against SARS-CoV-2 infection due to its in vitro antiviral effects,it is imperative high-quality data from worldwide clinical trials are necessitated for an approved therapy.In terms of hydroxychloroquine(HCQ)therapy,although WHO has stopped all the clinic trials due to its strong side-effects in COVID patients,large scale clinical trials with a long-term outcome follow-up may warrant HCQ and azithromycin combination in combating the virus.Convalescent plasma(CP)therapy suggested its safety use in SARS-CoV-2 infection;but both CP immunotherapy and NK cellular therapy must be manufactured and utilized according to scrupulous ethical and controlled conditions to guarantee a possible role of these products of human origin.Further research should be conducted to define the exact mechanism of SARS-CoV-2 pathogenesis,suitable animal models or ex vivo human lung tissues aid in studying replication,transmission and spread of the novel viruses,thereby facilitating highly effective therapies.