PLASMA
THERAPY - SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
News:
No antibiotics, plasma
therapy to treat adult COVID patients: government
What's
in the news?
●
The COVID-19
National Task Force of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare issued
revised clinical guidelines for the management of adult COVID-19 patients.
●
As per the new guidelines, convalescent
plasma therapy and drugs, including lopinavir-ritonavir, molnupiravir,
favipiravir, azithromycin and doxycycline, are not to be used for treatment.
Key
takeaways:
●
Antibiotics should not be used unless
there is clinical suspicion of bacterial infection. The possibility of
co-infection of COVID-19 with other endemic infections must be considered.
●
Physical distancing, indoor mask use, hand
hygiene, symptomatic management (hydration, anti-pyretics, antitussive),
monitoring temperature and oxygen saturation (with pulse oximeters) is vital.
●
Patients are advised to seek immediate
medical attention if there is difficulty breathing, high-grade fever/ severe
cough, particularly if lasting for more than five days.
Plasma
Therapy:
●
Plasma is the liquid part of the blood. Convalescent plasma, extracted from the
blood of patients recovering from an infection, is a source of antibodies
against the infection.
●
The therapy involves using their plasma to
help others recover.
●
For Covid-19, this has been one of the
treatment options.
●
A COVID-19 patient usually develops
primary immunity against the virus in 10-14
days.
●
The donor would have to be a documented
case of Covid-19 and healthy for 28 days since the last symptoms.
Why
was Plasma Therapy discontinued?
●
An ICMR study has found convalescent
plasma was not associated with a
reduction in progression to severe Covid-19 or all-cause mortality.