The laboratory of clinical hematology of the Prague Central Military Hospital is busy in the morning. Volunteers arrived at the representative glass building A to help with the treatment of covid-19. But they will not take care of patients or help doctors. They came to donate valuable antibodies directly from their own veins.
–
There is even a short queue at the entrance. After completing a short questionnaire, proving with the citizen’s card and the insurance company’s card, the paramedic is already taking several blood samples. The staff is busy, but otherwise there is a pleasant atmosphere that regular blood donors are well acquainted with. People gathered here who wanted to help.
–
Not everyone gets the opportunity to do so. The so-called convalescent plasma can only be donated by people who have suffered from covid-19 disease, or whose defense mechanism has produced antibodies after encountering the SARS-CoV-2 virus. Neither too short nor too long must have elapsed since the virus was transmitted, nor can women who have ever been pregnant or people who have received a blood transfusion donate.
–
Read details on plasma donation here:
–
So-called convalescent plasma has been used by doctors to treat diseases for decades. It helps, for example, in severe cases of the flu or against Ebola. Donor plasma improves the body’s immune response to covid-19 infection. It can save the lives of patients with a severe course.
–
But successful donation has many conditions. Some are identical to blood donation, others even more strict, above all, the donor must arrive at the right time after the disease. Some hospitals even openly seek only newly cured men. Those who became infected in the spring will probably not have antibodies in the autumn.
–
Plasma and blood groups
The universal plasma donor is people with blood group AB, which is exactly the opposite of blood donation. There are people with the rare group AB, on the other hand, a universal recipient.
——
Nevertheless, hospitals do not complain about the lack of donors. Apparently, the call of the Ministry of Health, the addressing of the public by the hospitals themselves and perhaps also the activity of the media also contributed to this. In addition, the number of donors has increased in recent weeks as the number of cured patients increases.
–
“Yes, there has been an increase, 20-30 donors of convalescent plasma are coming to the FNO Blood Center every week. Of course, we welcome every man who is willing to donate and meets the conditions for donating convalescent plasma, we will not refuse anyone like that, “says Petra Petlachová, spokeswoman for the Ostrava University Hospital.
–
It takes a few seconds to take a few blood samples. The laboratory then looks for antibodies in them, and if the analysis confirms them, the doctors will contact the potential donor themselves within two weeks.
–
“During the first wave of coronavirus, only about 30% of donors had therapeutic antibody levels. During this period, the levels of antibodies in donors are higher, over 70% of plasma donors have the necessary antibodies, “says Adam Fritscher, a spokesman for the Olomouc University Hospital. And it’s similar in other teaching hospitals that take plasma.
–
The plasma collection then takes about three-quarters of an hour, depending on how fast it flows from the body. Typically, doctors take about 660 ml.
–
“You can stab me with both hands, I have a hand. I drink a bottle of mineral water every day, “encourages paramedics in the Iron Maiden T-shirt from the sampling chair.
–
There is enough blood, unfortunately
Most teaching hospitals collect plasma, but this is not the case for everyone. For example, the University Hospital at St. Anny in Brno or the Motol University Hospital in Prague must buy plasma for their patients. But there are plenty of plasmas for large hospitals.
–
And they don’t even complain about the lack of donated blood, which is in the evergreen operation of all Czech hospitals.
–
“A pandemic has a negative effect on blood donation, many donors have suffered from the disease, are in convalescence or in quarantine, so the number of donors has decreased slightly to moderately,” says Marie Heřmánková, spokeswoman for the General University Hospital in Prague. “But securing substitution for patients is certainly not in jeopardy,” he adds with one breath.
–
The explanation is simple, but not reassuring. Due to the covid-19 epidemic, hospitals have limited other care, especially planned operations, in which donated blood has its main use.
–
“Currently, planned surgical procedures, such as orthopedic ones, are being postponed, so the consumption of conventional transfusion products is also lower,” explains a spokesman for the Fritscher Hospital in Olomouc.
—
