ALABAMA, USA — The drug ivermectin has been popping up on Google searches and social media as a treatment for COVID.
What's the story behind ivermectin and COVID? We checked it out.
Sources: National Institutes of Health, FDA,
What is ivermectin?
Ivermectin is an antiparasitic drug that is approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for certain conditions, particularly parasitic worm infections. It's also commonly used to as a heartworm preventative and to treat some parasitic conditions in animals.
Is ivermectin a treatment for COVID-19?
According to all three of our sources, the answer is that there is research being done, but its usefulness and effectiveness have not been proven, and it's not approved for the treatment or prevention of COVID.
The National Institutes of Health says:
- The COVID-19 Treatment Guidelines Panel (the Panel) has determined that currently there are insufficient data to recommend either for or against the use of ivermectin for the treatment of COVID-19. Results from adequately powered, well-designed, and well-conducted clinical trials are needed to provide more specific, evidence-based guidance on the role of ivermectin for the treatment of COVID-19.
Clinical studies have given conflicting results, and there are major limitations on these studies. The NIH says,
- Some clinical studies showed no benefits or worsening of disease after ivermectin use, whereas others reported shorter time to resolution of disease manifestations attributed to COVID-19,greater reduction in inflammatory markers, shorter time to viral clearance, or lower mortality rates in patients who received ivermectin than in patients who received comparator drugs or placebo.
- However, most of the studies reported to date had incomplete information and significant methodological limitations, which make it difficult to exclude common causes of bias.
The most frequent limitations cited were the small sizes of the studies and the administration of other medications along with ivermectin, making it hard to assess of the true efficacy or safety of ivermectin.
The FDA says:
- While there are approved uses for ivermectin in people and animals, it is not approved for the prevention or treatment of COVID-19. You should not take any medicine to treat or prevent COVID-19 unless it has been prescribed to you by your health care provider and acquired from a legitimate source.
- A recently released research article described the effect of ivermectin on SARS-CoV-2 in a laboratory setting. These types of laboratory studies are commonly used at an early stage of drug development. Additional testing is needed to determine whether ivermectin might be appropriate to prevent or treat coronavirus or COVID-19.
- Ivermectin tablets are approved for use in humans for the treatment of some parasitic worms (intestinal strongyloidiasis and onchocerciasis) and ivermectin topical formulations are approved for human use by prescription only for the treatment of external parasites such as headlice and for skin conditions such as rosacea.
- Ivermectin is FDA-approved for use in animals for prevention of heartworm disease in some small animal species, and for treatment of certain internal and external parasites in various animal species. People should never take animal drugs, as the FDA has only evaluated their safety and effectiveness in the particular species for which they are labeled. Using these products in humans could cause serious harm.
Conclusion:
While there have been a number of small-scale studies on the effectiveness of ivermectin to treat COVID-19 with varying results, it is not approved as a treatment. Research is still underway.
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