Egypt tries plasma treatment to fight COVID-19 pandemic

The technique was proven effective in small studies to treat other infectious diseases

Last updated: September 09, 2020 | 06:54

Compiled by Christian Borbon, Senior Web Editor with inputs from AP

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Egypt, like the United States and a handful of other countries, is trying to fight the pandemic in part by using convalescent plasma, the watery fluid in the blood of recovered patients that is teeming with antibodies.

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The idea is to harvest the plasma and inject it into other patients to give them an immunological boost that helps fight the same infection.

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The scientific community is divided on using plasma to treat Covid-19, but proponents say the technique has proven effective in small studies to treat other infectious diseases, including Ebola and SARS.

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Nascent clinical plasma trials to fight the new pandemic have also been launched in Bolivia, Britain, Colombia, India, Mexico, Pakistan and South Korea.

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Ihab Serageldin, director of Egypt's National Blood Transfusion Centre, said he believes convalescent plasma is a promising treatment while the race continues to develop, mass-produce and distribute an effective vaccine.

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Serageldin said there was no data yet on the success rate of Egypt's plasma project.

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Over 200 people have so far donated plasma, each providing 800 ml of the fluid split into four bags, which are given to two patients at a time.

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In June, local media reported that plasma bags from recovered patients were being informally traded for over 20,000 Egyptian pounds ($1,200) each.

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An Egyptian man who recovered from Covid-19 donates blood at the National Blood Transfusion centre in Cairo.

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While one parliamentarian called for criminalising the practice, Egypt's foremost Muslim institution Al-Azhar ruled that it was not permissible under Islamic law to trade plasma informally and lambasted those "profiting from the pandemic".

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