Iranian Red Crescent Medical Journal (IRCMJ)

Comparative Analysis of Nine COVID-19 Convalescent Plasma Protocols Registered by Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials

Jianli Cui; Youfu Ke

Volume 22, Issue 8 , 2020

Abstract

Context: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has progressed into a public health emergency of international concern. Passive immunotherapy has been successfully used for the treatment of infectious diseases since the 1890s. It is necessary and constructive to compare and analyze COVID-19 ... Read More Context: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has progressed into a public health emergency of international concern. Passive immunotherapy has been successfully used for the treatment of infectious diseases since the 1890s. It is necessary and constructive to compare and analyze COVID-19 convalescent plasma (CCP) randomized controlled trials (RCTs) to help clinicians to have a potential option for COVID-19. Evidence Acquisition: In this study, eight databases were searched on May 1, 2020, such as China National Knowledge Infrastructure, PubMed, and Cochrane Library, with the search fields of "Title Abstract Keyword" of "Convalescent plasma AND COVID-19" or " Convalescent plasma AND SARS-CoV-2". The outcome of interest was clinical RCTs for COVID-19. Results: The search retrieved nine relevant CCP protocols for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). All nine trials were randomized, parallel assignment, interventional, clinical treatment studies with NCT04344535, NCT04345289, and NCT04323800 masking and the rest open-label. The estimated enrollment is within the range of 40-1,500 subjects, and five trials will be finished in 2020 as opposed to two in 2021 and two in 2022. Except for NCT04323800 on the prevention of COVID-19, other eight trials will test and verify the effectiveness and safety of CCP for the treatment of COVID-19. The used dosage of CCP is within the range of 200-600 mL. NCT04344535, NCT04323800, and NCT04346446 use standard donor plasma in controlled groups in comparison to NCT04348656, NCT04342182, NCT04333251, and NCT04345523 without any positive drug in controlled groups. NCT04332835 adds hydroxychloroquine to both groups, and only NCT04345289 is a six-armed placebo-controlled trial. Primary and secondary outcome measures are differently expressed in the nine trials. Nevertheless, they can be summarized as ? changes in time, day, and number of a 7-point ordinal scale. There are ? changes in SARS-CoV-2 ribonucleic acid (i.e., viral load), anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibody titers (i.e., immunoglobulin M and immunoglobulin G), C-reactive protein, lymphocyte count, lactate dehydrogenase, and interleukin 6 on a specified day or during a specific period. Conclusion: The nine well-designed RCT trials will establish the efficacy of CCP for the treatment of SARS-CoV-2 from the perspective of evidence-based medicine.

Chinese Medicine Treatment of Cytokine Storm Caused by COVID-19

Youfu Ke; Jianli Cui

Volume 22, Issue 7 , 2020

Abstract

Context: COVID-19 has turned into a pandemic, threatening the lives of millions of people worldwide. Research has found that some COVID-19 patients will suddenly aggravate, resulting in a cytokine storm, respiratory distress syndrome, and death. It is necessary to articulate the mechanism of cytokine ... Read More Context: COVID-19 has turned into a pandemic, threatening the lives of millions of people worldwide. Research has found that some COVID-19 patients will suddenly aggravate, resulting in a cytokine storm, respiratory distress syndrome, and death. It is necessary to articulate the mechanism of cytokine storm and propose a Chinese medicine treatment strategy for COVID-19. Evidence Acquisition: A literature search was conducted using five databases on April 30, 2020, including PubMed, Google Scholar, Cochrane Library, China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), and Wanfang Data with the keywords of "cytokine storm AND Chinese medicine AND COVID-19 ", "cytokine storm AND Chinese medicine AND SARS-CoV-2". The outcome of interest was the concept and mechanism of cytokine storm, the characteristics, and the Chinese medicine treatment of COVID-19 cytokine storm, etc. A total of 43 articles were retrieved after removing duplicate articles. Results: The cytokine storm is also called cytokine cascade. The body overreacts with positive feedback without negative feedback, making a variety of abnormal cytokines accumulations, triggering a cytokine storm. COVID-19 cytokine storm does not occur in the early stages, but only after a period of development, it attacks not only the lungs but also the heart, kidneys, and other organs. The key pathogenesis is "toxins and blood stasis, lung failure" in Chinese medicine. The treatment is detoxification, removing blood stasis, and nourishing the lung. Chinese medicine should comprehensively regulate multiple targets and multiple pathways to intervene in the immune regulation of the body to intercept the progress of inflammation and focus on the integration of Chinese medicine with Western medicine to combine anti-virus and anti-inflammatory therapy. Conclusions: The immune response caused by cytokine storm is a complex signal network with multiple targets and pathways and various cytokines acting together. Immunomodulation can balance the excessive inflammatory response and effectively control the replication and spread of SARS-CoV-2. Returning the immune response to a balanced state is an ideal method for treating COVID- 19 cytokine storm. Chinese medicine can achieve overall coordination and balance. Nevertheless, the pharmacology of Chinese medicine must be further studied, and the mechanism of cytokine storm treatment should be thoroughly clarified

Iranian Red Crescent Medical Journal (IRCMJ)

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Author = Cui, Jianli

Comparative Analysis of Nine COVID-19 Convalescent Plasma Protocols Registered by Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials

Abstract

Chinese Medicine Treatment of Cytokine Storm Caused by COVID-19

Abstract