Responding to regulatory challenges during public health emergencies

ABSTRACT

The outbreak of Severe Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome Coronovirus-2, which is responsible for the COVID-19 pandemic that started in 2020, has served as a reminder of the importance of emergency response preparedness. As blood transfusion became a more routine practice during the twentieth century, adverse effects outside of immediate and delayed transfusion reactions became more apparent. At any given time, there are hundreds of pathogens that could potentially be associated with epidemics or pandemics, and a number of these are known to be transmitted by blood transfusion or could potentially be transmitted by blood transfusion. The success of a containment strategy largely depends on how fast an outbreak is detected. Convalescent plasma obtained from individuals infected with other respiratory viruses had shown some potential benefit in other outbreaks, and the evidence was strong when high titer plasma was administered early in the course of infections. © 2022 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.