Carter BloodCare is working with doctors and hospitals to collect convalescent plasma under the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s Emergency Investigational New Drug guidance.
According to the FDA website, “One investigational treatment being explored for COVID-19 involves the use of convalescent plasma collected from recovered COVID-19 patients. It is possible that convalescent plasma that contains antibodies to SARS-CoV-2 (the virus that causes COVID-19) might be effective against the infection.”
Carter BloodCare has the necessary equipment and staff to collect plasma from individuals with a suitable concentration of antibodies to the coronavirus causing COVID-19.
Donors must satisfying not only the blood center’s donor criteria, but also the additional FDA criteria, including negative results for COVID-19 on sophisticated testing and resolution of symptoms for at least 14 days.
Convalescent plasma donors are identified by physicians at area hospitals and are not recruited by Carter BloodCare.
The FDA website says that “although promising, convalescent plasma has not been shown to be effective in every disease studied. It is therefore important to determine through clinical trials, before routinely administering convalescent plasma to patients with COVID-19, that it is safe and effective to do so.”
According to Carter BloodCare, collecting convalescent plasma from COVID-19 survivors is another way that to help save lives.
The protocols for physicians who want to participate are outlined on the FDA website.
