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Starr County holds convalescent plasma drive to fight COVID-19

3 years 7 months 5 days ago Sunday, August 23 2020 Aug 23, 2020 August 23, 2020 10:08 AM August 23, 2020 in News - Local

Starr County held its first-ever convalescent plasma drive Saturday.

Doctors use plasma from people who recovered from COVID-19 to treat patients struggling with the virus.

"I'm extremely, ecstatically, happy today that we finally have arrived at the day when we can have a donor drive for the community," said Martha Torres, the director of nurses and infection control at Starr County Memorial Hospital.

Plasma is one of very few treatment option for the virus, which doesn't have a vaccine or a cure.

While not approved for use by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, plasma is considered an "investigational product" that may benefit patients.

"Although promising, convalescent plasma has not yet been shown to be safe and effective as a treatment for COVID-19," according to the FDA website. "Therefore, it is important to study the safety and efficacy of COVID-19 convalescent plasma in clinical trials."

Starr County Memorial Hospital partnered with DHR Health and Vitalant to hold the plasma drive. 

Watch the video for the full story.

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