Presently, the use of convalescent plasma and hyperimmunoglobulin obtained from individuals who have recovered from coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has proved to potentially provide passive antibody-based immunity, thereby leading to several clinical trials to develop an immune-based COVID-19 treatment. However, the therapeutic efficacy of hyperimmunoglobulin in critically ill patients with COVID-19 remains unknown. On 23 October 2020, we first administered GC5131 in a compassionate-use program to critically ill patients at the Kyungpook National University, Chilgok Hospital, Korea. Since then, five more critically ill patients were treated with GC5131 in this compassionate-use program in our hospital up until 17 December 2020. We retrospectively reviewed the clinical responses of six critically ill patients diagnosed with COVID-19 who received the hyperimmunoglobulin concentrate, GC5131, which was produced by the Green Cross Corporation. After the administration of GC5131, five patients died due to an exacerbation of COVID-19 pneumonia. GC5131 was ineffective when administered to critically ill patients with COVID-19. Nevertheless, we propose that to expect a therapeutic effect from GC5131, it should be administered as early as possible to avoid the excessive inflammatory response phase in patients with severe and advanced COVID-19 infection. This step was difficult to achieve in the real world due to the time required for decision making and the process of the compassionate-use program.
【저자키워드】 COVID-19, Immunoglobulin, convalescence, plasma, clinical effectiveness, 【초록키워드】 Treatment, coronavirus disease, convalescent plasma, Coronavirus disease 2019, COVID-19 pneumonia, clinical trial, Pneumonia, Decision making, hospital, excessive inflammatory response, Critically ill, COVID-19 infection, Patient, university, critically ill patients, administration, Critically ill patient, Exacerbation, clinical response, individual, therapeutic efficacy, therapeutic effect, green, clinical responses, Administered, FIVE, compassionate-use, produced, develop, required, treated, antibody-based immunity, Corporation, diagnosed with COVID-19, patients died, with COVID-19, 【제목키워드】 review, literature, Ill, Sery,