Wisconsin health systems use plasma from recovered COVID-19 patients to treat disease
Image of Gary Dalgaard courtesy of UW Health
Wisconsin health systems have started treating COVID-19 patients with plasma donated from those who have recovered from the disease.
Convalescent plasma therapy is a more-than-century-old procedure that involves transfusing plasma from patients who have survived an infection to those fighting the disease.
Dr. William Hartman, a UW Health anesthesiologist, said they hope with the transfusion that the “superpower of an antibody will neutralize and kill the virus in the sick patient as well.”
Hartman is the local principal investigator of the COVID-19 Convalescent Plasma Program, started by Johns Hopkins University and the Mayo Clinic.
He said they worked around the clock to bring the therapy to Madison. They did two transfusions this past weekend.
Doctors have used the procedure to treat other respiratory diseases, including the H1N1 influenza virus and SARS, when there isn’t a vaccine or approved treatment.
Dr. Ajay Sahajpal, director of Advocate Aurora’s Health transplant program, said that the history behind the procedure shows it’s “hit and miss.”
The health system performed its first convalescent plasma transfusion for a COVID-19 patient Friday.
“In some cases, it’s actually shown a benefit to patients,” Sahajpal said. “I think the biggest issue is figuring out the best time to give it.”
Sahajpal said the plasma is a limited resource until there’s enough people that get infected and can donate.
He said they’re encouraging the public to donate and hoping to see an expanded donor pool in the next three months.
“Until there’s a vaccine, this will help us work through that process,” he said.
The Food and Drug Administration has not approved convalescent plasma as a treatment for COVID-19, although it has issued guidance for its use as an emergency investigational new drug.
Advocate Aurora is using that pathway with Versiti, which is where the health system received its plasma in Wisconsin. It’s also working with the American Red Cross in Illinois.
Versiti recently began collecting plasma from recovered patients.
It also provided plasma to Ascension Wisconsin, which performed its first transfusion on Thursday.
Dr. Jonathan Treisman, a hematologist and medical oncologist at Ascension Medical Group, said they’re working with the national clinical trial with Mayo Clinic.
“The people who are going out of their way to provide plasma, who are donating their plasma, are truly heroes,” Treisman said.
Gary Dalgaard of Sun Prairie donated his plasma, which was given to UW Health for its transfusions.
“This, all of a sudden, presented us with some way that we could help,” he said.
Gundersen Health is in the process of joining the national clinical trial, according to a spokesman.
A Mayo Clinic spokesman said they can’t confirm any specific patients have received the treatment from Mayo, but they’re working with their La Crosse hospital as part of the treatment end of the program.
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