CONVALESCENT PLASMA THERAPY for COVID-19

The rapid spread of SARS COV-2 or COVID-19 around the world is said to be the greatest challenge of humankind, not only in health and medicine but also in the country’s economy.

Almost all countries, especially in the affected areas, have started to find a cure. Studies are rampant in an attempt to develop a treatment for the deadly virus. The Convalescent plasma therapy, developed and used during the pandemic about 100 years ago (1918), was said to be one of the effective treatment options. Transfusion of a person’s blood plasma who recovered from COVID may help fight infection in people who are still suffering from the virus and severely-ill.

Convalescent plasma was also used as a treatment option during SARS, MERS-COV, and H1N1 outbreaks. Studies show that a patient with chronic acute respiratory infections who received Convalescent plasma is more likely to recover quickly. During that time, the number of mortality cases due to Convalescent plasma therapy is less.

However, collecting sufficient blood plasma is another obstacle. It takes a large number of recovered patients to get enough blood plasma to be shared with others.

Numerous clinical trials are being conducted on Convalescent plasma in different parts of the world, and results will be become more evident by the end of the year. A national-wide multicenter clinical trial has also been launched in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia which included more than 20 hospitals. The trial aims to include 135 patients who will be compared with similar group who have not taken the plasma. The study would be expected to complete by the end of 2020.