Convalescent Plasma for Treatment of Patients with COVID-19

Testing the use of blood plasma as a treatment and preventive measure against COVID-19 in Wisconsin

Full Project Name:Convalescent Plasma for Treatment of Patients with COVID-19Principal Investigator:Gilbert C. White II, MD, Hematology and OncologyAward Amount:$382,664

Award Date

April2020

Project Duration:9 months

Project Description Narrative:

COVID-19 has killed more than 33,000 individuals globally and more than 2,300 Americans. In Wisconsin, the rate of COVID-19 is exponentially increasing. Given widespread community transmission, prevention of disease spread now ultimately depends on effective treatment to limit the number of individuals who can spread the disease. One potential treatment is collecting convalescent plasma from the blood of recovered patients and infusing it into another person to give them the antibodies to fight or prevent infection.

The goal of this project, a joint effort between Versiti and MCW, is to identify, obtain, and provide convalescent plasma from recovered patients with COVID-19 to patients with active disease and, as a prevention, to frontline health care workers.

Community Partner: Versiti Wisconsin, Inc.

Outcomes & Lessons Learned:

Established appropriate IRB protocols and approvals to carry out study and treatment, identifying opportunities to create efficiencies in the study to streamline care of patients and follow-up data collection
Disseminated refined processes developed at Versiti Wisconsin to other Versiti locations outside of the state to inform similar work
Enrolled 141 participants in an interventional, single-arm phase-2 study with all participants receiving convalescent plasma as part of their treatment plan
Documented initial study results, suggesting that convalescent plasma, in the setting of early disease and less severe symptoms, resulted in reduced mortality compared to patients with more severe disease

Project Updates:

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