Immune plasma for the treatment of severe influenza: an open-label, multicentre, phase 2 randomised study.

Background: Influenza causes substantial morbidity and mortality despite available treatments. Anecdotal reports suggest that plasma with high antibody titres to influenza might be of benefit in the treatment of severe influenza.

Methods: In this randomised, open-label, multicentre, phase 2 trial, 29 academic medical centres in the USA assessed the safety and efficacy of anti-influenza plasma with haemagglutination inhibition antibody titres of 1:80 or more to the infecting strain.

Granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor induces modest increases in plasma human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) type 1 RNA levels and CD4+ lymphocyte counts in patients with uncontrolled HIV infection.

Background: Studies have reported that plasma human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) RNA levels and CD4+ lymphocyte counts in HIV-infected patients improved after treatment with granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF).

Methods: In AIDS Clinical Trials Group Protocol 5041, 116 patients were enrolled in a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled clinical trial of 16 weeks of 250 microg of GM-CSF administered subcutaneously 3 times/week, followed by open-label treatment for an additional 32 weeks. Patients had stable baseline plasma HIV-1 RNA levels of > or =1500 copies/mL and received constant antiretroviral regimens through at least the first 16 weeks of the study.

Immune reconstitution is comparable in antiretroviral-naive subjects after 1 year of successful therapy with a nucleoside reverse-transcriptase inhibitor- or protease inhibitor-containing antiretroviral regimen.

We compared immune restoration in patients who suppressed human immunodeficiency virus type 1 replication after treatment with a protease inhibitor (PI) plus nevirapine or with 3 nucleoside reverse-transcriptase inhibitors (NRTIs) plus nevirapine. Changes in total and memory CD4 and CD8 cells were similar in the groups, as were decreases in immune activation (e.g.