Plasma from recovered patients shows little benefit in those hospitalized with COVID-19 - study

FILE PHOTO: Convalescent plasma samples in vials are seen before being tested for COVID-19 antibodies at the Bloodworks Northwest Laboratory during the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in Renton, Washington, U.S. September 9, 2020. Picture taken September 9, 2020. REUTERS/Lindsey Wasson

(Reuters) - Using blood plasma from COVID-19 survivors to treat patients with severe pneumonia caused by the novel coronavirus showed little benefit, according to data released on Tuesday from a clinical trial in Argentina.

The therapy know as convalescent plasma, which delivers antibodies from COVID-19 survivors to infected people, did not significantly improve patients' health status or reduce their risk of dying from the disease any better than a placebo, the study published in The New England Journal of Medicine found.