Is Ivermectin Effective in Treating COVID-19?

Abstract

Coronavirus disease 2019 was first discovered in December 2019 and subsequently became a global pandemic with serious political, economic, and social implications worldwide. We urgently need to find drugs that can be effective against COVID-19. Among the many observational studies, ivermectin has attracted the attention of many countries. Ivermectin is a broad-spectrum antiparasitic drug that also has some antiviral effects. We reviewed studies related to ivermectin for the treatment of COVID-19 over the last 2 years (2019.12–2022.03) via search engines such as PubMed, Web of Science, and EBSCOhost. Seven studies showed a lower mortality rate in the ivermectin group than in the control group, six studies found that the ivermectin group had a significantly fewer length of hospitalization than the control group, and eight studies showed better negative RT-PCR responses in the IVM group than in the control group. Our systematic review indicated that ivermectin may be effective for mildly to moderately ill patients. There is no clear evidence or guidelines to recommend ivermectin as a therapeutic agent for COVID-19, so physicians should use it with caution in the absence of better alternatives in the clinical setting, and self-medication is not recommended for patients.

Low-Income Pregnant Patients with Covid-19 in A Public Hospital in Mexico’s Metropolitan Area. Diagnostic and Treatment Dilemmas.

“…Chlorine dioxide is an excellent disinfectant, but should not be ingested by humans. Prevention programs must be established for avoid the self-medication and consume of chlorine dioxide, this drug is absorbed quickly across the gastrointestinal tract and is toxic [7,8,9,10,11].…”

Ivermectin Affects Neutrophil-Induced Inflammation through Inhibition of Hydroxylysine but Stimulation of Cathepsin G and Phenylalanine Secretion

“…Recent studies have also revealed the antiviral activity of ivermectin associated with the ability to inhibit flavivirus replication by targeting the NS3 helicase [ 61 ], block the importin alpha/beta-mediated nuclear transport of viral proteins, capable of inhibiting the replication of HIV-1 and dengue virus [ 62 ], and inhibit SARS-CoV-2 replication in vitro [ 63 ]. Currently, the possibility of using ivermectin for the prevention and treatment of inflammatory processes induced by viral diseases [ 8 , 9 , 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 ], as well as for the treatment of cancer patients [ 14 ], is being studied. We assumed that the therapeutic effect of ivermectin is associated not only with antiviral activity, but also with its effect on human innate immunity, namely, with its effect on neutrophil function.…”

“…Clinical studies on the effectiveness of ivermectin for the prevention and treatment of coronavirus disease are controversial. Some case series analysis demonstrates the ability of ivermectin to alleviate disease-associated severity and recovery rate [ 10 , 11 ]. Another analysis failed to demonstrate the efficacy of ivermectin in the treatment of COVID-19 [ 12 , 13 ].…”

“…Another analysis failed to demonstrate the efficacy of ivermectin in the treatment of COVID-19 [ 12 , 13 ]. The therapeutic effect of ivermectin is highly dependent on the phase of the disease in which the patient receives the drug [ 11 ]. Clinical trials have also revealed the high potential of ivermectin as an antitumor agent due to its ability to suppress tumor cell invasion into tissues leading to the formation of metastases [ 14 ].…”

Factors of progression to severity and death in COVID-19 patients at two health care sites in Bamako, Mali

“…Therapeutic strategies were then oriented towards symptomatic treatment and strengthening of the immune system by the administration of antioxidants. Several non-speci c drugs, such as hydroxychloroquine [8,9], remdesivir [10,11], ivermectin [12], lopinanvir/ritonavir [13] have been tested. Other therapeutic options including direct-acting antivirals (Paxlovid) and monoclonal antibodies (Molnupiravir, uvoxamine, Regdanviman, tocilizumab, sarilimab, etc.)…”