We are all aware of the COVID-19 situation. Every organization related to health and pharmacy has been trying every possible way to help curb the pandemic situation. We immediately need some remedies to stop these viruses.
Every organization tried their best to make vaccine against the pathogen. But for now plasma therapy is being tried as a temporary remedy to treat patients. India also started joined in this. In India states like Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh where the number of positive cases increased rapidly started this therapy. Other states waited for the approval from ICMR.
What is Plasma?
Blood is made out of two types of components
Blood cells which includes RBC, WBC and Platelets.
Plasma the colorless watery fluid of the blood that contains no cells, but in which the blood cells are suspended, it is about 55% of total blood amount.
Who should Donate Plasma?
A person who is 18 years old and at the same time at least 110 pounds can donate the Plasma only after the physical examination for viruses like HIV, AIDS etc are done.
What is Plasma Therapy?
If one person is infected with a pathogen, his immune system identifies it and immediately starts to produce Antibodies. Antibody binds with the pathogen and they eventually destroy this. Antibodies remains in the patient’s body as memory cell and if the same antigen again attacks the person then it responds quickly against it.
In Plasma therapy, these antibodies can be transferred from a healthy individual to a patient through blood plasma transfusion. This is an example of passive immunity that doesn’t develop inside one’s body but they gained it. In the year of 1892, the first trial was done for diphtheria using animal’s serum.
Seven hospitals in Delhi got the permission to try this Plasma Therapy on patients. A recent study was done in March, 2020 and published from Wuhan where 10 adult individuals of COVID-19 responded well to the transfusion therapy and soon they started developing antibodies. The viral load falls quickly within 7 days.
How do they acquire Plasma?
As blood is made out of two components plasma obtained by separating the cells. Plasma is frozen quickly after donation (up to 24 hours) to preserve clotting factors, stored up to one year, and thawed just before use.
Who can donate plasma?
COVID-19 patients who have recovered can donate the Plasma. He should donate the plasma within 14 days of his recovery. Doctors prefer at least a gap of three weeks between recovery and donation.
How many people will be benefitted with one person’s plasma and how much plasma extracted?
2 patients can be treated from the plasma collected from one donor. One individual can donate 500 ml of plasma.
Side Effects of Plasma Therapy
As this procedure involves blood transfusion firstly both of them should undergo all the possible medical tests, otherwise some disease may be transmitted to the patient.
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