Trammels Entailed in Convalescent Plasmapheresis During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Emphasizing the Anti-SARS-CoV-2 IgG Antibody Level in Repeat Voluntary Convalescent Plasma Donors.

Publication date: Aug 01, 2025

Objective During the outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2, the unavailability of any specific antiviral agents or vaccines to combat the pandemic demanded an efficient therapeutic approach. Convalescent plasma (CP) emerged as an alternative therapy for COVID-19 patients. The primary objective of the study was to observe the anti-SARS-CoV-2 IgG antibody levels in repetitive convalescent plasma donation from the same individual. Methods The present study was carried out between 5 August 2020 and 17 May 2021 in the Transfusion Medicine department, Maharaja Krushna Chandra Gajapati (MKCG) Medical College, Berhampur, over nine months and 12 days. Results Out of the 603 individuals contacted, 564 came forward for screening, and 377 individuals donated the convalescent plasma. This study reported a majority of male donors, i. e., 355 in number. We managed to collect 37 repeat convalescent plasma units out of 400 from 14 donors. It was also observed that the maximum number of donors and recipients had the O+ve blood group. The most promising outcome of this study was to manage the convalescent plasma donation from repeat donors, i. e., five times from two plasma donors. Here, we found the declining level of antibody titer within five months between two consecutive plasma donations. Conclusion This study highlighted the declining anti-SARS-CoV-2 IgG antibody levels in a time-dependent manner. However, we report this as a pioneering work on repetitive convalescent plasma donation from the same individual upon following stringent inclusion and exclusion criteria to select an eligible and potential plasma donor.

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