Plasma therapy worked on my body in 3 days, says recovered Covid-19 patient

I had received plasma from a doctor named Dr Izhar Munshi who had recovered from coronavirus, said the patient

As plasma therapy is still in experimental stage and several states continue the trial of it for Covid-19, a doctor who donated his plasma after recovering from coronavirus and a plasma recipient who has recovered now have shared their experiences. Kapil Dev Bhalla, a plasma therapy recipient, said, “I was admitted in Aurobindo Hospital wherein during my treatment for coronavirus the congestion in my chest was not getting cured despite several efforts. On April 26, I was told by Dr Ravi Dhosi that they are planning to administer plasma therapy on me. I gave them a thumbs up and within three days it worked on my body. I had received plasma from a doctor named Dr Izhar Munshi who had recovered from coronavirus.”

ALSO READ: First Covid-19 patient to receive plasma therapy in UP dies of heart attack

He further said, “The congestion which earlier was getting cured in the extremely slow process got cleared within three days of getting plasma. I was taken off oxygen and then got discharged on May 6.”

“I have already told the doctors at Aurobindo Hospital that I am ready to donate plasma whenever they want,” he added. Dr Iqbal Qureshi, a plasma donor, told ANI: “I was admitted in Aurobindo after I was tested Covid-19 positive. After I was discharged and completed 14 days of home quarantine, I received a call from Aurobindo Medical College, Indore asking me to donate plasma therapy. I immediately agreed.” “From my body, about 400 ml plasma was taken and it benefitted two patients. Hence, I urge people who have recovered from coronavirus to donate plasma,” he added.

Covid-19 treatment: AIIMS to conduct clinical trials of plasma therapy

The AIIMS director stresses on the need to have good and well-conducted research trials before the therapy is recommended for routine use

The All India Institute of Medical Sciences is planning to conduct a clinical trial of the convalescent plasma therapy in the treatment of Covid-19 patients, AIIMS Director Dr Randeep Guleria said on Tuesday. The modalities of taking the approval from the Drug Controller General of India (DCGI) is being worked out, official sources said.

Stating that the mode of treatment in Covid-19 is still at an “experimental stage”, Guleria stressed on the need to have good and well-conducted research trials before its benefit, and this mode of therapy can be recommended for routine use in coronavirus patients. “AIIMS is working with the ICMR to conduct a clinical trial on the efficacy of convalescent plasma therapy in Covid-19 patients,” he said. The doctor said it is necessary for all institutes to take necessary approvals from the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) and DCGI and follow proper clinical practice guidelines for this research.

“In very limited studies, globally, convalescent plasma as an adjunct to other supportive therapies and treatments has shown some benefit in the management of severe patients of Covid-19,” Guleria said. He also underlined that plasma has to be tested for its safety and it should have sufficient antibodies to be useful for giving it to Covid-19 patients. “Giving plasma from a recovered patient without testing whether it has enough antibody titer or not may cause more harm than good as it can cause transfusion-related reactions,” he said…Read More