As many as 140 men who got cured of COVID-19 until now donated convalescent plasma that helps treat serious and very serious infections with the novel coronavirus. The donated plasma was used to make over 500 therapeutic doses of plasma, head of the National Blood Transfusion Center Svetlana Cebotari stated for IPN.
According to Svetlana Cebotari, some of the former patients cannot easily decide to donate plasma immediately after finishing the treatment. Some of them cannot give a positive answer when being discharged or, even if they give a positive answer, later refuse to donate. Even so, there are persons who recovered from COVID-19 and who come individually, without being contacted by representatives of the National Blood Transfusion Center, to inform themselves about the donation of plasma and to ultimately donate some.
Svetlana Cebotari called on all those who are eligible to donate to come and donate plasma as this is a safe procedure. The donors must be men aged between 18 and 60 and must not suffer from other diseases except for COVID-19 of which they got cured. The plasma can be donated after 14 days of the disappearance of the last symptom of disease or after full recovery.
One donation of plasma, of about 600 ml, is divided into three doses of 200 ml each, which are offered to three patients respectively. The treatment consists of the administering of one dose a day. Up to five doses are administered to each patient. The persons can donate plasma at the National Blood Transfusion Center, which has local subdivisions in Bălți, Cahul and Chisinau, and at other donation centers.
According to the latest data of the Ministry of Health, Labor and Social Protection, the total number of confirmed infections now stands at 9,700. As many as 335 infected persons are in a serious state and 27 of them were put on a ventilator.