A CRITICALLY ill COVID-19 patient was discharged from the Shenzhen No. 3 People’s Hospital on Sunday after receiving a new treatment involving specific antibodies obtained from the plasma of cured patients, becoming the city’s first antibody-treated patient, said the hospital.

The patient, who was not identified, was sent to the hospital Jan. 22 and transferred to the intensive care unit (ICU) Feb. 1.

“The elderly patient also has underlying diseases that made his treatment especially difficult,” said Wang Zhaoqin, the hospital’s vice president.

Doctors at the hospital employed a series of treatments including injecting specific antibodies obtained from the plasma of cured patients to treat the critically ill patient.

Different from treatments that involve using the plasma of cured patients, this treatment targets the specific antibodies in the plasma that can be used for treating infected patients of all blood types. Additionally, this method can increase the recovery rate, according to Shenzhen Economic Daily.

Treated with these specific antibodies, the patient finally made a recovery and was transferred from the ICU to the general ward Feb. 12.

“We started relevant research very early on and during the fight against severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and avian influenza, the hospital had successfully used the plasma of recovered patients to cure infections,” said Wang.

Wang also said that recovery of critically ill patients is largely attributed to the fact that each patient receives 24-hour care from medics.

In the meantime, the hospital also takes meticulous measures to manage patients’ conditions and uses both traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) and Western medicine to enhance the efficiency of the therapies, according to Wang.

The Shenzhen No. 3 People’s Hospital also released a medical guidance for cured patients Sunday.

The guidance advises cured patients on how to improve their respiratory, organ and body functioning, reduce complications, and address psychological disorders such as distress so as to aid them in adjusting to normal life.

The guidance is applicable in designated medical institutions, quarantine sites, residential communities and homes.

A team of experts from departments spanning infectious disease, TCM, rehabilitation and psychological consultation will roll out customized recovery plans for each cured patient and follow up on their situations closely with medical consultations in a designated period of time.

As of yesterday, the Shenzhen No. 3 People’s Hospital had received a total of 419 COVID-19 patients. Among them, 373 have so far been discharged from the hospital, with 43 infected patients remaining. (Wang Jingli)