Experimental coronavirus treatment has begun at the hospital in Bolesławiec. Convalescent plasma has already been administered to three patients. There is no reason for excessive optimism yet, but one patient was taken off a ventilator after two days. She is currently breathing on her own.
What does the process look like from a logistical perspective? “We cannot keep the plasma on site,” explains Jarosław Kuc, head of the Anesthesiology and Intensive Care Department at the Healthcare Complex in Bolesławiec. “When there is a patient and we are certain that they will consent to this treatment, we order the plasma and arrange transport.”
The hospital in Bolesławiec is one of three centers across Lower Silesia where this therapy, approved by the State Research Agency under the direction of Professor Grzegorz Mazur from Wrocław Medical University, is being tested. All data from Bolesławiec will be sent to Professor G. Mazur.
Where did the idea of administering convalescent plasma to patients infected with coronavirus come from? “It is an old method that was used both during the SARS epidemic and during the Ebola epidemic. It produced good results,” says Jarosław Kuc. “It is not a dangerous method.”