Bhubaneswar: In a major development in fight against coronavirus, Odisha government has decided to start plasma therapy trials for Covid-19 patients.
The decision in this regard was taken at a meeting , chaired by Health Minister Naba Kishore Das in the presence of health secretary PK Mohapatra and senior health experts, held here.
In the first phase, plasma banks will be set up at four medical institutes of the state. The institutes are SCB Medical College and Hospital and Ashwini Hospital in Cuttack , KIMS Hospital and SUM hospital in Bhubaneswar.
Plasma therapy is an experimental procedure where plasma from the blood of a recovered Covid-19 patient is transfused to a critically ill coronavirus patient. The blood of a person who has recovered from Covid-19 develops antibodies. When injected into the blood of another patient, these antibodies are supposed to help that person fight the infection.
A technical committee will be constituted to implement the treatment. The committee will also prepare a detailed guideline to the government in this regard.
Sources said, those who are below the age of 60 and do not have underlying health conditions such as the diabetes, hypertension, heart disease etc. will be considered potential donors.
Ms Kalinga