Abstract
This study was conducted to validate the efficacy of therapeutic plasma exchange (TPE) in reducing the excessive cytokine load complicating a subset of patients with severe COVID-19 and respiratory compromise. Additionally, this trial explored molecular signals of potential benefit by the addition of JAK inhibition to TPE. Findings included an improvement in cytokine excess and oxygenation along with incremental benefit in cytokine reduction with the addition of ruxolitinib. While exploratory in nature, this study adds momentum to the pursuit of larger randomized trials.
Keywords
COVID-19, Therapeutic plasma exchange, Cytokines, Respiratory failure, Clinical trial, JAK inhibition