Turkey: Immune plasma treatment helps man beat COVID-19

MANISA, Turkey

A 71-year-old man diagnosed with coronavirus in Turkey was discharged from the hospital on Monday following successful immune plasma treatment.

Muammer Yildiz, along with his family, was diagnosed with the disease three weeks ago and was referred to a hospital for medical care.

Yildiz was treated for 10 days, but after his condition deteriorated he was sent to another hospital in Manisa province for further care.

Doctors decided that Yildiz would receive immune plasma treatment, which proved a good move as he regained his health and finally tested negative.

He told Anadolu Agency that he had been through a difficult period and gave up his hope on life.

Dr. Murat Ozgurmus said Yildiz was one of the first patients to get immune plasma treatment in the province.

Dr. Mehmet Fatih Zeren said it was important to see a senior citizen recover from the disease, adding that immune plasma played a role in his recovery.

Turkey has so far reported over 126,000 coronavirus cases and more than 63,000 of them recovered. The country's death toll stands at 3,397.

The pandemic has killed over 249,000, with total infections exceeding 3.52 million, while more than 1.13 million have recovered, according to figures compiled by Johns Hopkins University in the US.

*Writing by Ali Murat Alhas