Plasma therapy no longer a recommended cure for COVID

New Delhi: The National Covid Task Force has decided to drop convalescent plasma therapy as a potential cure for COVID after it has been found ineffective in reducing the progression of the disease or fatalities.

The Centre has removed from its recommended treatment for COVID on the recommendation of the COVID Task Force.

All the members of the task force, which includes senior officials, scientists and top doctors, were in favour of removing the use of plasma therapy from the treatment guidelines at a meeting last week, news agency PTI reported.

The procedure had been part of previous guidelines that said it could be used on moderate patients within seven days of the onset of symptoms.

This comes after several scientists had written to Principal Scientific Advisor K Vijay Raghavan, warning against the "irrational and non-scientific use" of the procedure in the country.

The letter, which was marked to Indian Council Medical Research head Balram Bhargava and AIIMS Director Randeep Guleria, had claimed that early evidence indicated a possible association between emergence of variants with "lower susceptibility to neutralising antibodies in immunosuppressed" people given plasma therapy, news agency PTI reported.

"We are writing to you as concerned clinicians, public health professionals and scientists from India about the irrational and non-scientific use of convalescent plasma for COVID-19 in the country...This has stemmed from guidelines issued by government agencies, and we request your urgent intervention to address the issue which can prevent harassment of COVID-19 patients, their families, their clinicians and COVID-19 survivors," the letter read.

Social media has been flooded with pleas of the families of Covid patients for coronavirus-recovered people to donate plasma.

Several politicians, actors and other celebrities have helped people arrange plasma for their patients, as the more dangerous second wave of infections ravaged the country, killing thousands of people every day.

Experts say because of the misuse of steroids, which can diminish the natural immunity of the body, fungal and bacterial infections are killing active and cured Covid patients.

"Misuse of steroids is a major cause behind this infection. Chances of fungal infection (Black Fungus) increase in the patients who are diabetic, Covid positive and those who are taking steroids. To prevent it, we should stop the misuse of steroids," Dr Guleria had last week.