One plasma donor who has recovered from COVID-19 may help up to three patients struggling with the coronavirus, Deputy Moscow Mayor Anastasia Rakova said on Thursday
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 09th April, 2020) One plasma donor who has recovered from COVID-19 may help up to three patients struggling with the coronavirus, Deputy Moscow Mayor Anastasia Rakova said on Thursday.
Earlier in the day, she said that 11 recovered COVID-19 patients had become donors of plasma to facilitate the treatment of others.
"One donor will be able to provide plasma to one to three patients. Doctors say that the most important thing is the understanding and responsiveness of potential donors. The more plasma specialists can collect, the more people can be saved," Rakova told reporters.
Recovered patients who agree to this procedure are carefully selected and examined, including through a string of blood tests. They must have negative tests for HIV, hepatitis B and C; a hemogram; and biochemical blood tests. Their blood also needs to contain specific antibodies and meet a number of other mandatory requirements, she added.
Blood samples are also tested for their immune response to find out how useful this plasma can be for other patients. Afterward, a donor undergoes a standard and painless procedure of plasmapheresis, which lasts 40 minutes.
