'Passive immunisation' trial in Pakistan to treat Covid-19 patients

Karachi - Blood plasma of those recovered from Covid-19 will be infused in struggling patients.

To curb the spread of the coronavirus in Pakistan, the Sindh government approved trial of "passive immunisation" to treat positive cases in the province as there is no vaccine or treatment available.
The experiential treatment is a technique in which blood plasma of those recovered from Covid-19 will be infused in struggling patients as it has antibodies to fight the infection. According to reports in Geo TV, the passive immunisation will be carried out under supervision of hematologist Tahir Shamsi.
"Under this technique, blood plasma from a healthy person is extracted and injected into the blood of a patient suffering from the coronavirus," Shamsi said. The trial will also be presented to other provinces for approval before a detailed strategy is chalked out to implement the procedure in various hospitals across the country.
Shamsi added, "After the (blood plasma) transfer, the injected plasma generates anti-bodies in the immune system of the patient suffering from the coronavirus. These anti-bodies eventually fight off the virus."

According to reports in The Guardian, so-called "convalescent plasma" would be given to patients and their contacts in a number of clinical trials that are under consideration with medical funding bodies.
Prof David Tappin, a senior research fellow at the University of Glasgow, has applied to the National Institute for Health Research to run two clinical trials with convalescent plasma.

• Pakistan