The Ebola outbreak of the past year was a reminder of the lack of treatment options for people infected. According to the World Health Organization’s Ebola Response Roadmap Situation Report, as of November 2014, 15,935 Ebola cases have been reported and 5,689 deaths.
No vaccines or treatments are currently available and interventions are at early stages. Although nearly infections occur in West Africa, Ebola cases have been reported and treated in the U.S..
A new study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Emerging Infectious Dieases (EID) journal, shows that antibodies from recovered infected people may be an effective treatment method for Ebola virus infections.
The small clinical and animal data models suggest that whole blood or plasma transfussions may be a viable treatment option; both contain Ebola antibodies. Researchers analyzed which of the two methods worked best.
Whole blood transfusions appear to be least effective. Whole blood donations are very limited. Donors may only donate one ounce per quarter. It would also require matching of blood and antigen types. With plasma donations, only blood types must be matched. A donor may also donate twice a week, collecting several hundred milliliters per donation. Plasma also contains a higher volume of antibody material making it the best treatment option today.
“Although the continued development of long-term scalable solutions such as a vaccine for Ebola remains critical, existing technology and protocols could help fill the gap,” says Dr. Thomas R. Kreil with Baxter BioScience. “Establishment of a supply of virus-inactivated reconvalescent plasma for treatment of persons infected with this virus may be the most feasible treatment option.”
