The Maharashtra government received authorization to conduct multi-centric trials of convalescent plasma therapy on patients suffering from the coronavirus. This happens to be a significant development as for the first time in the country trials will be conducted at 21 medical colleges across Maharashtra.
Convalescent plasma therapy is an experimental treatment. The blood from the people who have recovered is called convalescent plasma. Plasma is the liquid portion of the blood. The researchers hope that the plasma can be given to people suffering from the coronavirus to boost their ability to fight the disease. At the moment, the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) is conducting trials of convalescent plasma therapy on mild and moderate patients. In Maharashtra, they are being held at five government colleges and six private medical colleges.
In Mumbai, trials will be conducted at Grant Medical College, Topiwala National Medical College at BYL Nair Hospital, KEM Medical College, Lokmanya Tilak Municipal Medical College at Sion, and Cooper Hospital Medical College. The process will involve transfusion of plasma, a blood component, from a recovered patient to an infected patient. There are said to be three criteria to be eligible in order to become a donor. Firstly, the person has to have been infected with the coronavirus and completely recovered. The individual would need to complete 28 days from the time of testing negative for the virus and needs to have a haemoglobin level of 12.5 grams per decilitre.
In the past hospitals in Mumbai had started administering Tocilizumab to treat patients suffering from the coronavirus. The administration of the drug depends on a couple of factors like a person’s weight, round the clock oxygen support and CT scans for the critically ill. The medicine, ideally given to patients suffering from arthritis have been given to over 80 patients in KEM, Sion, Nair and Kasturba hospital.
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