The World Health Organisation has recommended against using Ivermectin to treat patients with coronavirus disease but the anti-parasitic medicine is widely prescribed by doctors in India for the same. Goa government has even asked its adult population to take a five-day course, irrespective of their Covid status, to prevent complications.
On Tuesday, a senior WHO scientist took to Twitter to reiterate the organisation’s recommendation. “Safety and efficacy are important when using any drug for a new indication. @WHO recommends against the use of ivermectin for #COVID19 except within clinical trials,” said Dr Soumya Swaminathan, chief scientist, World Health Organisation in a tweet.
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She also quoted a statement from pharmaceutical company Merck from February this year which states, “Our analysis has identified: *No scientific basis for a potential therapeutic effect against Covid-19 from pre-clinical studies; no meaningful evidence for clinical activity or clinical efficacy in patients with Covid-19 disease, and; a concerning lack of safety data in the majority of studies.”
In India, the drug is a part of clinical guidance for management of adult Covid patients that was jointly released by Union health ministry, and Indian Council of Medical Research’s National Covid Task Force last month.
{{/usCountry}}In India, the drug is a part of clinical guidance for management of adult Covid patients that was jointly released by Union health ministry, and Indian Council of Medical Research’s National Covid Task Force last month.
{{/usCountry}}As per the guidance, Ivermectin is advised for patients with mild Covid-19 disease under therapies based on low certainty of evidence.