Manatee Memorial Hospital joins national clinical trial for treating COVID-19 patients with plasma
Manatee Memorial Hospital has joined a clinical trial program coordinated by the Mayo Clinic and American Red Cross to collect and administer COVID-19 convalescent plasma to eligible patients.
Blood (plasma) from recovered COVID-19 patients contains antibodies that may help fight the disease.
Manatee Memorial announced in a press release that it has joined the clinical trial program in response to the challenge of fighting coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). The U.S. government supports a national expanded access clinical trial program to collect and provide convalescent plasma to patients in need across the country.
Dr. Eliot Godofsky, the hospital’s clinical investigator, will oversee the clinical trials at Manatee Memorial Hospital. Godofsky and hospital staff will work together on the screening of recovered COVID-19 positive patients to be part of the program collection, the administration of the plasma and trial results.
The hospital will work collaboratively with industry, academic, government partners and hospitals throughout the country on its results.
Only eligible hospitalized patients referred by their health care provider will participate in receiving convalescent plasma. Hospitalized patients are eligible to receive convalescent plasma if:
▪ They are 18+ years of age
▪ They have laboratory-confirmed diagnosis of infection with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the virus that causes COVID-19
▪ They are admitted to an acute care facility for the treatment of COVID-19 complications
▪ They have severe or life-threatening COVID-19, or judged by the treating provider to be at high risk of progression to severe or life-threatening disease
▪ There is informed consent provided by the patient or healthcare proxy
COVID-19 convalescent plasma (CCP) has the potential to offer effective therapy for patients with severe or life-threatening infection, due to the current pandemic utilizing healthcare systems, already in place.
The rate-limiting step in the process is the availability of blood type-matched plasma from COVID-19 recovered donors. It is critical that persons recovered from documented or presumptive COVID-19 infection contact their local blood bank or the American Red Cross to be screened for antibody levels indicative of their ability, to be a plasma donor.
“Individual donors are able to typically provide enough plasma for three doses of CCP. There is no better way for a community to step up and help take care of its’ own,” Godofsky said.
Kevin DiLallo, CEO, Manatee Memorial Hospital, said that he is proud that Manatee Memorial staff and community are involved in this study.
“The hope is that injecting patients with these antibodies might provide an initial layer of protection as their own immune system kicks
into gear,” he said.
COVID-19 convalescent plasma has not yet been demonstrated to provide clinical benefit in patients affected by this disease. It is not known if this treatment will help those with COVID-19 or if it will have any harmful effects, but this is one of the only treatments available at present.
