In a first, Government Medical College (GMC), Amritsar,started a trial to treat Covid patients with the convalescent plasma therapy. Under the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) certified yet unproven treatment, the antibody-rich blood plasma of patients who have recovered from Covid is preserved for transfusion into moderately-ill patients.

Convalescent Plasma Therapy:-
Convalescent plasma (CP) therapy is not a new therapy and banks on the age-old concept of passive immunity.
Basis of the Therapy:
The convalescent plasma therapy seeks to make use of the antibodies developed in the recovered patient against the coronavirus.
The whole blood or plasma from such people is taken, and the plasma is then injected in critically ill patients so that the antibodies are transferred and boost their fight against the virus.
 

Time Period for Infusion:
A study in The Lancet Infectious Diseases stated that a Covid patient usually develops primary immunity against the virus in 10-14 days. Therefore, if the plasma is injected at an early stage, it can possibly help fight the virus and prevent severe illness.

Infusion into Covid-19 Patients:
The plasma can be infused into two kinds of Covid-19 patients, those with a severe illness or individuals at a higher risk of getting the virus.
However, while plasma transfers immunity from one person to another, it is not known if it can save lives in Covid-19 infection.
The treatment could be effective for patients in the age group 40-60, but may be less effective for people aged beyond 60 years.

Previous Application:
The United States used plasma of recovered patients to treat patients of Spanish flu (1918-1920).
Hong Kong used it to treat SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) patients in 2005.
In 2009, the Swine flu (H1N1) patients were treated with plasma.
It has also been used to treat critically ill patients during Ebola as well.
The report of a study, Proceedings of National Academies of Sciences (U.S.), highlighted that CP therapy shows a potential therapeutic effect and low risk in the treatment of severe Covid-19 patients.
According to the study, one dose (200 ml) of convalescent plasma with a high concentration of neutralising antibodies is well-tolerated by patients and it can rapidly reduce the viral load in patients and improve clinical symptoms significantly.