India batting legend Sachin Tendulkar on Wednesday inaugurated a plasma donation center at Seven Hills Hospital in Mumbai, Maharashtra, for the treatment of Covid-19 patients, It is not the first time Tendulkar has been seen helping out in tackling the coronavirus pandemic in the country. In May, the former India batsman had donated Rs 50 lakh for the fight against the pandemic in the country.
Plasma therapy, a process in which blood rich in antibodies from a Covid-19 recovered patient is transfused into the body of someone still struggling with the virus, has been found to be successful in treating patients suffering from the virus. In plasma donation, as against blood donation, plasma is extracted from the body while other components of the blood are injected back into the body, says Dr Sangeeta Pathak, senior consultant and head of department for the blood bank at Max Healthcare last month
In an interview with Hindustan Times earlier this month, ILBS director Dr SK Sarin, had said that plasma donors should be a Covid patient younger than 60 years of age, not having uncontrolled diabetes, hypertension, chronic kidney, heart, lung, or liver diseases and are well-nourished and weigh above 50kg.
Maharashtra is among the worst affected states in the country at the moment. While Delhi accounts for the highest 3497.1 recovered cases per million as against 1242.9 active cases per million, followed by Maharashtra having 869.5 recovered cases per million as against 661.6 active cases per million, according to health ministry.
India saw its Covid-19 tally jump by another 22,752 in the last 24 hours to reach 7,42,417. According to the Union health ministry data at 8 am, the number of active cases in the country are 2,64,994 and 4,56,830 patients have been cured or discharged. The total number of fatalities has now reached 20,642 after 482 people died in the last 24 hours, the health ministry data showed.
The government, however, said on Tuesday that the total number of coronavirus infections and fatalities per million population in the country are among the lowest in the world.
The health ministry said that India’s recovered cases per million population is more than active Covid-19 cases per million. It credited the states and Union Territories for early identification and effective management of the coronavirus cases.
