Covid-19: 50-year-old Indian donates plasma 14 times after recovery

Pune - He is ready to donate for the 15th time now.

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Ajay Munot. Photo courtesy: The Indian Express

Published: Thu 13 May 2021, 1:18 PM

A 50-year-old man from Pune, who recovered from Covid-19 in June 2020, has donated plasma 14 times after his recovery.

Ajay Munot, a consultant, told a journalist that he never felt weak or uneasy after donating plasma. "People have false notions that blood is taken out during plasma donation,” he said. “Plasma is separated from the blood and it contains antibodies. Plasma donation is not blood donation.”

According to Dr Purnima Rao at Sahyadri Hospital, Munot has donated plasma 14 times at the hospital. “Plasma donation does not affect a donor,” she said. “In fact, it stimulates the functioning of bone marrow and leads to the formation of new blood cells.”

Munot noticed people asking for plasma on social media. “I donated my first plasma 28 days after I recovered in July and it was an emergency when a patient’s family was searching for a plasma donor,” he said.

He also went for antibody tests, which showed he had enough of them in his blood. “I am ready to donate for the 15th time now,” he said.

Pankaj Sonawane, another Pune resident, said he approached blood banks in August last after his mother turned critically ill. Initially, some donors agreed to give the blood, but backed out later. The police then gave him Munot’s number.

After getting plasma from Munot, Sonawane’s mother’s health improved and she was out of the ICU soon. “She is now leading a normal life,” said Sonawane. “Had Munot not given plasma, it would have been difficult to save my mother’s life.”

Munot claims he is the first person in India to have donated plasma 14 times. He has also got a certificate from the India Book of Records, which has finalised his claims as ‘Maximum plasma donation by an individual.’