E-Paper
ICMR removes Ivermectin, HCQ from revised guidelines on Covid-19 treatment
Both the medicines, however, can be used with caution in a climax trial setting.
The Indian Council of Medical Research and the Covid-19 National Task Force have dropped the usage of Ivermectin and Hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) drugs from their revised "clinical guidance for management of adult Covid-19 patients".
However, both the medicines can be used with caution in a climax trial setting. According to reports, experts of the government bodies did not find enough evidence of a potential therapeutic effect of the widely used medicines against coronavirus.
A study by the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) had earlier said the antiparasitic medicine Ivermectin did not reduce the viral load or duration of symptoms in patients with Covid-19 even at higher doses. This was found in a randomised controlled trial on 157 patients admitted with mild to moderate disease at the premier hospital during the first surge of infections between July and September last year.
Also read | Govt drops Ivermectin, HCQ and favipiravir from Covid-19 treatment list
A report in The Hindu Business Line said Hydroxychloroquine was dropped because of no mortality benefit, increased risk of address drug effect (ADE) when co-administered with Azithromycin.
Studies also found there was no clarity on mortality benefit, no effect on length of stay and clinical recovery in case of Ivermectin.
The World Health Organisation had warned against use of Ivermectin a day after Goa health minister Vishwajit Rane recommended the medicine for all adult residents of the coastal state to fight the deadly virus.
