Introduction
Novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has become a global
concern since 2019. By August 2021 more than 4,300,000 people have been
sacrificed by this disease[1].
No definitive treatment has been found, so it makes sense to consider
the effects of possible treatments on the disease. One of these possible
treatments is Intravenous Immunoglobulin (IVIG), which has been reported
to have contradictory effects in previous studies[2, 3].
The IVIG is a plasma-derived drug that was first used to treat some
immune deficiencies[4]. It has been used as an adjunct therapy in
the management of some infections. Among viral infections, this
treatment has been used to prevent and treat various viruses such as
influenza, viral hepatitis, rabies, measles and severe acute respiratory
syndrome (SARS)[5]. Studies have revealed that IVIG can be effective
in the treatment of severe acute viral pneumonia such as influenza and
para-influenza pneumonia[6, 7]. Antigen clearance and immune system
modulation are increase by IVIG [8]. Due to the mechanism, safety
and efficacy of this treatment in previous viral infections, some
centers have utilized it in severe cases of COVID-19 infection. Despite
its efficacy, this treatment is expensive and has various side
effects[9]. Thus, the effectiveness and safety of this intervention
in COVID-19 infection is debatable. Based on several studies IVIG
administration in COVID-19 patients is controversial[9, 10].
In this study we intend to investigate the efficacy of adding IVIG to
the standard regimen of COVID-19 infection in outcome measures such as
duration of hospitalization, mechanical ventilation, and intensive care
unit (ICU) length of stay and mortality rate.