‘Islamabad Plasma Registry Initiative’ launched: Dr Hasan Orooj

ISLAMABAD: Islamabad authorities have decided to begin plasma therapy process to treat COVID-19 patients in the federal capital, ARY NEWS reported quoting Director General (DG) Health Metropolitan Corporation Dr Hasan Orooj.

Talking to ARY NEWS, he said that the local health services department has initiated the plasma registration campaign and it is titled as ‘Islamabad Plasma Registry Initiative’.

“We have started process to collect data of patients who have recovered from COVID-19 in Islamabad so that information on possible donors could be collected,” Dr Hasan Orooj said.

He said that they would soon be issuing contact details so that recovered COVID-19 patients could register themselves with the authorities.

He further appealed to the recovered COVID-19 patients from Islamabad to register themselves and donate plasma to save lives of critical patients.

It is pertinent to mention here that the Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP) had allowed clinical trials of blood plasma therapy to treat coronavirus patients in the country.

Plasma, the fluid in blood teeming with antibodies post-illness, has already proven effective in small studies to treat infectious diseases including Ebola and SARS.

Many COVID-19 patients in Pakistan have recovered from this process.

Dr Shamsi, who had proposed the treatment of coronavirus patients through passive immunisation, had termed plasma donation to COVID-19 patient as a safe and secure procedure.

It must be noted that the plasma immunisation is being used in many countries by using blood donated by recovered patients for introducing anti-bodies in those COVID-19 patients receiving treatment.

The therapy can also be used to immunise the people at high risk of contracting the virus including health professionals, families of patients and others.

The plasma immunisation procedure was also approved by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the American Food and Drug Administration (FDA).