WESTERLY – Three COVID-19 patients at Westerly Hospital have received a plasma infusion through donations from the New York Blood Center.
The treatment, which was recently approved by the Food and Drug Administration, is also being offered at Lawrence + Memorial Hospital in New London, Conn., which, along with Westerly Hospital, is part of Yale New Haven Health System.
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The two hospitals are treating a total of 30 COVID-19 patients.
Yale New Haven Health is participating in a nationwide clinical trial run by the Mayo Clinic to make use of “convalescent plasma” to treat COVID-19.
Convalescent plasma is blood plasma donated by people who have fully recovered from COVID-19.
“We are extremely pleased to be able to offer this treatment as an option for our patients,” said Dr. Mudassar Khan, the study’s lead investigator for Westerly Hospital. “The premise is that the donor’s immunity can be passed on to the recipient.”
Plasma therapy has been used to treat severe acute respiratory syndrome, or SARS, Ebola and other infections.
Rhode Island residents who have recovered from COVID-19 can contact the Rhode Island Blood Center for more information about plasma donation.
