How should we use convalescent plasma therapies for the management of COVID-19?

Convalescent plasma (CP) from blood donors with antibodies to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2may benefit patients with COVID-19 by providing immediate passive immunity via transfusion or by being used to manufacture hyperimmune immunoglobulin preparations. Optimal product characteristics (including neutralizing antibody titers), transfusion volume, and administration timing remain to be determined. Preliminary COVID-19 CP safety data are encouraging, but establishing the clinical efficacy of CP requires an ongoing international collaborative effort. Preliminary results from large, high-quality randomized trials have recently started to be reported.

Automated summary

Convalescent plasma from blood donors with antibodies to SARS-CoV-2 may benefit COVID-19 patients by providing immediate passive immunity via transfusion or by being used to manufacture hyperimmune immunoglobulin preparations. Optimal characteristics, transfusion volume, and administration timing remain to be determined, requiring international collaborative efforts to establish clinical efficacy. Preliminary safety data for COVID-19 CP is encouraging, with ongoing large, high-quality randomized trials starting to report preliminary results.