With no vaccines developed yet and global trials for drugs as possible cures for COVID-19 still underway, efforts are ongoing to develop adjunct therapies. Adjunctive therapy is a treatment used to support the main or primary treatment of diseases.
The UP Philippine General Hospital (UP-PGH) with support from the Department of Science and Technology – Philippine Council for Health Research and Development (DOST-PCHRD) is conducting the project: “Convalescent Plasma as Adjunctive Therapy for Hospitalized Patients with COVID-19.”
The project aims to evaluate the efficacy and safety of convalescent plasma transfusion as adjunctive therapy to prevent disease progression among hospitalized COVID-19 patients. Convalescent plasma is taken from the blood of patients who recovered from infection and contains neutralizing antibodies against it.
According to Dr. Michael Ryan, Executive Director of the Health Emergencies Program of the World Health Organization (WHO), the use of convalescent plasma transfusion is a valid approach in treating infectious diseases as demonstrated in previous pandemics such as the H1N1 influenza, 2003 SARS-CoV-1, and the 2012 MERS-CoV outbreaks. In a press conference in Geneva last February, he explained that through the transfusion, “you’re giving (the patients) a boost of antibodies to hopefully get them through the very difficult phase.”
“For the past months, we have been mobilizing our resources and maximizing our capacities to help combat COVID-19. Through this project, we are hoping to provide supportive treatment to COVID-19 patients to avoid worst-case scenarios,” DOST- PCHRD Executive Director Jaime C. Montoya said.
Aside from developing locally-produced convalescent plasma, the project also aims to strengthen the capacities of healthcare professionals in its clinical use, not only for COVID-19, but also for other future emerging infections. The team has started the call for blood donations from COVID-19 survivors last April 2020. The project will run for 12 months. With reports from PCHRD
