2nd in 3 days: Plasma recipient is out of ICU

2nd in 3 days: Plasma recipient is out of ICU

Sunitha.Rao@timesgroup.com

Bengaluru:  06.06.2020

A Covid-19 patient who was administered convalescent plasma therapy is making a quick recovery raising hopes of successful treatment. The 38-year-old woman treated at Trauma Care Centre in Victoria Hospital was given the therapy on May 27.

Her condition has improved and she was shifted out of ICU on Thursday. She is yet to test negative for Covid-19. She is the second recipient of plasma therapy in the Trauma Care Centre and third in the state.

On June 2, doctors in KIMS, Hubballi, claimed they had succeeded in giving plasma therapy to a 64-year-old and he had made a good recovery. On May 12, a 20-year-old man from AP treated at Bengaluru’s Trauma Care Centre was given plasma therapy, but he died.

Jayadeva study hints at herd immunity

Doctors at Sri Jayadeva Institute of Cardiovascular Sciences and Research said a surveillance study of 1,000 staffers indicated development of herd immunity to Covid-19. Over the fortnight, 10 of the staffers tested positive when antibody rapid testing kits were used and tested negative when they underwent the RT-PCR test. P 2

Woman treated with plasma therapy now on minimal oxygen support

Convalescent plasma therapy is seen as a hope for critically ill Covid-19 patients. The therapy is given using the blood plasma of a fully recovered Covid-19 patient.

The woman, who has poor sugar control history, was admitted to hospital in late May with severe acute respiratory infection and tested positive for Covid-19. “There has been a steady improvement in her condition. She was taken off the high-flow oxygen supply on June 2. At present, she is on minimal oxygen support and was shifted to the general ward on June 4,” said a hospital source.

Confirming the recovery, Dr CR Jayanthi, dean and director, Bangalore Medical College and Research Institute (BMCRI), said the patient will be discharged soon as her recovery has been faster. BMCRI is a part of the convalescent plasma therapy clinical trial, approved by Drug Controller General of India, along with Bengalurubased cancer hospital HCG.

Udupi worst-hit district

Meanwhile, with 685 infections in all, Udupi is Karnataka’s worst-hit district.

Four districts in Karnataka — Udupi, Kalaburagi, Raichur and Yadgir — now have more than 300 active cases each in designated hospitals.

The number of people infected in the state so far is 4,835, of whom 3,088 are currently being treated in hospitals. Among the cases reported on Friday, 482 (94%) were inter-state travellers. Of these, 473 had returned from Maharashtra and three from Delhi.