Understanding different types of blood plasma

Plasma, the liquid portion of blood, carries important proteins, nutrients, and antibodies throughout our body. Plasma makes up 55% of blood. Though blood is red when it comes out of the body, plasma is a light yellow liquid. Plasma is 90% water but also contains essential enzymes, proteins, and salt. Doctors and scientists use different types of plasma to help sick people. Three important types include source plasma, convalescent plasma, and recovered plasma. 

Source plasma

Healthy people donate source plasma at special donation centers. A machine separates their plasma from their blood cells and returns the remaining blood cells to their body. Scientists call this process plasmapheresis. Medical companies use source plasma to make medicines that help people with serious health conditions, such as subcutaneous immunoglobulin (SCIG) and intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) for people with primary immunodeficiencies. Donors can give plasma up to twice a week because it only takes their bodies 48 hours to make more plasma to replace what they donated.

Convalescent plasma

People who recover from a disease have proteins called antibodies in their blood plasma that helped them fight off the infection. Plasma that has a high concentration of antibodies to a specific pathogen is called convalescent plasma. During the COVID-19 pandemic, many people who recovered from COVID-19 donated their plasma to help others fighting the virus. Convalescent plasma works because of adaptive immunity, which develops throughout life, providing long-lasting protection against specific pathogens a person has encountered in case of future exposure. The antibodies in convalescent plasma give sick patients an extra boost to fight off the same disease. Think of it as borrowing someone else's defense system.

Recovered plasma

When someone donates whole blood, blood bank staff separate it into different parts: red blood cells, platelets, and plasma. We call the plasma from these whole blood donations recovered plasma. Doctors use recovered plasma in many important ways. They give it to patients who have lost a lot of blood during surgery or after accidents. Hospitals also use it to help people whose bodies don't make enough clotting factors, which help stop bleeding. Medical companies can turn recovered plasma into special treatments that help people with burns, shock, and liver problems. While recovered plasma remains useful, it differs from source plasma because donors give smaller amounts less frequently, since whole blood can only be donated every 56 days.

Doctors and scientists use each type of plasma differently in medicine. Medical companies turn source plasma into life-saving medicines. Doctors give convalescent plasma to people fighting specific infections. Hospitals use recovered plasma for direct transfusions or to make other medical products. All these types of plasma work together to help doctors treat many different health conditions and save lives.

Every plasma donation helps others, no matter what type. Scientists and doctors test all plasma carefully to make sure it is safe. These dedicated professionals work hard to turn generous donations into life-saving treatments. The one thing that they all have in common is they cannot be used to help those in need without donations of plasma from generous people like you.