⁍ Using blood of recovered COVID-19 patients as a potential treatment is of little benefit, according to results of a clinical trial in India.

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⁍ Convalescent plasma, which delivers antibodies from COVID-19 survivors to infected people, failed to reduce death rates or halt progression to severe disease.

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⁍ The United States and India have authorised convalescent plasma for emergency use.

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⁍ Other countries, including Britain, are collecting donated plasma so that it could be widely rolled out if shown to be effective.

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– President Trump called it a “historic breakthrough” back in August. Now, new research suggests it’s not a breakthrough at all. In a study published Friday in the BMJ British Medical Journal, scientists from India’s University of Reading report on the results of a clinical trial involving 464 adults with confirmed moderate to severe cases of COVID-19, a virus that causes AIDS. The patients were split into two groups: one that received two blood transfusions of “convalescent plasma” in 24 hours apart, alongside standard care, and the other that only received standard care. After seven days, however, the plasma seemed to improve some symptoms, including shortness of breath and fatigue, but it was not enough to reduce death rates or halt disease progression, per Reuters. “The poor performance of convalescent plasma in this trial is disappointing but not entirely surprising,” says Ian Jones, a virology professor at the University of Reading. “The plasma is more likely to work if given very swiftly after someone is contracts COVID-19.” He says researchers should continue to test the plasma in newly diagnosed patients. “We still do not have enough treatments for the early stage of disease to prevent severe disease and until this becomes an option, avoiding being infected with the virus remains the key message,” he says. The US and India have authorized the use of convalescent plasma for emergency use, and other countries, including Britain, are collecting donated plasma so it could be widely rolled out.