Minister Health and Population Welfare, Sindh, Dr. Azra Fazal Pechuho inaugurated the Plasma Exchange Unit at Civil Hospital Karachi. Vice Chancellor of Dow University, Prof. Dr. Saeed Qureshy was also in attendance at the inauguration. This is in collaboration with Dow University of Medical Health Sciences and the services this unit will deliver will be free of cost.
Plasma exchange is a safe and effective way to treat several neurological conditions and blood disorders, as well as ease symptoms. It also helps people who have organ transplants.
So far in the years 2022-23 the total number of patients who underwent Plasmapheresis has been 120. Each procedure, that is for each patient 5 sessions of plasmapheresis are required. Therefore for 120 patients multiplied by 5 sessions each has equalled 600 sessions in total. Each session costs 26 Thousand Rupees, so the cost of sessions covered has been 15,600,000. This number is expected to increase and it does increase every year.
Therapeutic plasmapheresis (removal of plasma) is an established life-saving procedure and the extent of its use has grown substantially and rapidly-more so far over the past few decades.
The most important and common neurological indication of Plasmapheresis is Guillain-Barre Syndrome. Moreover it can also be used in other acute neurological emergencies which includes Myasthenic crisis, New onset refractory status epilepticus, Autoimmune epilepsy, Acute disseminated encephalomyelitis and fulminant Wilson’s disease. Some of these disorders have no other treatment besides plasmapheresis.
