Clinical trials

The goal of this observational study is to evaluate how blood donors' lifestyle and nutritional status influence the quality of packed red blood cells (pRBCs) during storage and their impact on patient safety in transfused neonates and postpartum women. The main questions it aims to answer are: 1. Are donor lifestyle and nutritional profiles associated with the development of storage lesions in pRBCs? 2. Do these donor-related factors influence clinical outcomes after transfusion in neonates and postpartum women? 3. Are storage lesion in pRBCs associated with clinical outcomes in transfused neonates and postpartum women? Researchers will compare pRBC units stratified according to donor lifestyle and nutritional profiles to determine differences in storage lesion biomarkers and post-transfusion clinical outcomes.

The etiological agent of the current pandemic is a (+)ssRNA virus. SARS-CoV-2 is infecting thousands of people in the world with a fatality rate that varies from 0.1 to 5% in affected countries, thereby causing enormous economic losses. Few antibiotics have shown any efficacy in their combat, but have not yet proven adequate to stop the spread of the disease, nor are there any approved vaccines at the moment. From experiments in plants ongoing infections by RNA viruses, using thermotherapy, which is the application of heat at a temperature between 35-43 °C, the investigators know that raising the temperature affects the transcription of viral proteins due to the formation of small RNA molecules that interrupt the replication process by grouping in specific regions of the RNA molecule, preventing and inhibiting transcription. These small molecules are called small interfering RNAs (siRNAs). This feature has been used through thermotherapy in humans to combat the rapid replication of cells (i.e. cancer cells), attack cells infected by RNA viruses, and in the treatment of some parasitic infections.There are various commercially available devices for thermotherapy use in humans; they are mainly being used to ease muscle pain. They work by increasing the temperature in the range recommended for thermotherapy in humans 39-43 ° C. Therefore, the investigators consider this treatment modality can be used to aid in the elimination of SARS-CoV-2 from the human body, decreasing viral load, which could allow the immune system time for its control and elimination.