Coronavirus India | Delhi bats for plasma therapy despite ICMR downplaying its efficacy as COVID-19 cure

Coronavirus patients will continue to be treated using blood plasma donated by recovered COVID-19 patients in Delhi despite the Indian Council of Medical research ruling out the efficacy of the treatment in alleviating COVID-19 symptoms or reducing coronavirus-related deaths.

As per Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain, though clinical trials have not been able to establish if plasma therapy can help in treating COVID-19 patients, Delhiites who contract the novel coronavirus infection will continue to be treated using this method, reported News18.

A trial was earlier conducted by the ICMR across 39 hospitals in the country to find out if plasma therapy COVID-19 fatality or slows the progression of the disease. The study could not establish either facts. However, Jain has refuted the study findings and asserted that the plasma therapy treatment for coronavirus patients will continue in Delhi.

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The Delhi Health Minister is himself a recovered COVID-19 patient who claims to have benefited greatly from plasma therapy.

He said: “ICMR had its own study. As far as very severe (COVID-19) cases are concerned, there are three stages in the ICU -- one, two, and three. We had made it clear that the treatment will not be of any use to if a person reaches the third stage. However, it has many benefits to offer to stage one and stage two coronavirus patients.”

Jain further said that the ICMR never ruled out the benefits of plasma therapy, they only said it would not be of help if a patient is put on ventilator support. However, before a patient reaches that stage, plasma therapy can help greatly.

Delhi, with more than two lakh COVID-19 cases and over 4,500 COVID-19 deaths, is not the only state where the governments have allowed medical practitioners to continue with plasma therapy. In states like Odisha, Maharashtra, and Tamil Nadu also COVID-19 patients are being treated using plasma therapy.

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