The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) issued an advisory on Monday stating that the use of convalescent plasma has been dropped from the recommended treatment guidelines for COVID-19.
Even though a trial by the ICMR on 400 patients last year - called the PLACID trial - had found no significant benefit from the use of plasma it continued to find a place in the recommended guidelines, in ‘off label’ use.
Several other international trials had also found no benefit from plasma therapy. In fact some experts have said the use of such plasma may have even played a role in the facilitating new worrisome mutations to the virus.
The National Task Force of the ICMR, along with experts from the Health Ministry, periodically updates guidelines on recommended modes of treatment. Registered Doctors anywhere, however, aren’t bound by the Task Force recommendations.