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Therapeutic plasma exchange in a critically ill Covid‐19 patient
Author(s) -
Altmayer Victor,
Saheb Samir,
Rohaut Benjamin,
Marois Clémence,
Cao Albert,
Gallo Antonio,
Le Guennec Loïc,
Weiss Nicolas,
Demeret Sophie
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
journal of clinical apheresis
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.697
H-Index - 46
eISSN - 1098-1101
pISSN - 0733-2459
DOI - 10.1002/jca.21830
Subject(s) - medicine , therapeutic plasma exchange , intensive care medicine , covid-19 , critically ill , convalescent plasma , therapeutic approach , cytokine release syndrome , ards , respiratory distress , albumin , immunology , lung , surgery , disease , infectious disease (medical specialty)
Here we describe the effect of therapeutic plasma exchange with 5% albumin as sole replacement solution for the management of Covid‐19. A 74‐year‐old man was admitted for severe Covid‐19 acute respiratory distress syndrome. Based on the growing body of evidence that cytokine release syndrome, and especially interleukin‐6, plays a key role in critically ill Covid‐19 patients, we decided to implement therapeutic plasma exchange as a rescue therapy. The patient's clinical status rapidly improved, and biological records showed convincing results of decrease in interleukin‐6 and inflammatory parameters under treatment. This case presents a proof‐of‐concept for the use of therapeutic plasma exchange with 5% albumin as sole replacement solution in a critically ill Covid‐19 patient with cytokine release syndrome. This could constitute a major benefit in terms of security compared to long‐lasting immunosuppressive monoclonal antibodies, or to therapeutic plasma exchange with plasma as replacement fluid. Hence, we think that a further evaluation of risk‐benefit balance of this therapy in severe cases of Covid‐19 should rapidly be undertaken.