Does ivermectin have a place in the treatment of mild Covid-19?
Schwartz,
Does ivermectin have a place in the treatment of mild Covid-19?,
, E., New Microbes and New Infections, doi:10.1016/j.nmni.2022.100989 (Review)
Discussion of ivermectin research compared to paxlovid and molnupiravir. Author includes a meta analysis of low-risk-of-bias studies showing significantly lower hospitalization for outpatient treatment with ivermectin. This efficacy is seen even though treatment was relatively late on average, and even though the Together Trial has been included.
The Together Trial highlights the limitations of risk-of-bias analysis as opposed to more detailed analysis of actual bias. While the Together Trial may theoretically have a low risk of bias at a superficial level when ignoring the conflicts of interest, in practice the bias is very large due to known impossible data, blinding failure, randomization failure, and many protocol failures, in addition to extremely large conflicts of interest
[c19ivermectin.com].
Update:
[sciencedirect.com]
Schwartz et al., 27 May 2022, peer-reviewed, 1 author.
Contact:
elischwa@tauex.tau.ac.il.
Abstract: Journal Pre-proof
Does ivermectin have a place in the treatment of mild Covid-19?
Eli Schwartz, MD
PII:
S2052-2975(22)00041-5
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nmni.2022.100989
Reference:
NMNI 100989
To appear in:
New Microbes and New Infections
Please cite this article as: Schwartz E, Does ivermectin have a place in the treatment of mild Covid-19?,
New Microbes and New Infections, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nmni.2022.100989.
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© 2022 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd.
Editorial:
Does Ivermectin have a place in the treatment of mild Covid-19?.
Eli Schwartz, MD
The Center for Geographic Medicine and Tropical Diseases,
The Chaim Sheba Medical Center, Tel Hashomer &
Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel-Aviv University, Tel-Aviv, Israel
Correspondence:
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Prof. ELI SCHWARTZ MD, DTMH
The Center for Geographic Medicine and Tropical Diseases
The Chaim Sheba Medical Center, Tel Hashomer 52621, Israel
Email: elischwa@tauex.tau.ac.il
re
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r
Tel/Fax:+ 972-3-5308456
Key words: Hospitalization, SARS-CoV-2, Paxlovid, Molnupiravir, coronavirus treatment
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Dear Editor
Jo
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na
Ivermectin has been used to treat humans for the past 4 decades. It was approved as a
broad spectrum anti-parasitic agent, initially indicated in 1987 to treat onchocerciasis and
was given as a mass drug administration (MDA) in endemic countries. Its success awarded
the discoverers the Nobel prize of Medicine in 2015. Ivermectin’s principal activity was to
treat infections caused by roundworm parasites. Over the years, the spectrum was
broadened to include ectoparasites such as scabies among others. Through the years more
than 3 billion doses have been given to humans (not to horses) with a high safety profile,
and the drug was added to the World Health Organization’s List of Essential Medicines
[https://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/handle/10665/345533/WHO-MHP-HPS-EML-2021.02eng.pdf ]
In the last decade, several in-vitro studies have shown its anti-viral activity against a broad
range of viruses. At the beginning of the COVID pandemic, ivermectin was tested in vitro
against SARS-CoV-2 and showed a highly significant reduction (99.8%) in viral RNA after 48
hours (1) , but it was criticized that this was achieved by using a much higher dose in
comparison to the standard dose in human use (2). However, its anti-COVID activity in reallife in patients who were treated with standard dose of 3 days of ivermectin showed the
significant reduction in culture viability in the ivermectin group compared to placebo (3).
In addition, ivermectin has anti-inflammatory properties based on in-vitro and in animal
model studies. An extensive review of the potential mechanisms of action for ivermectin
against COVID-19 was recently published (4).
SARS-CoV-2 infection includes several stages, where the initial stage is manifested by high
viral replication followed by the second stage (occurring in the high risk groups..
Please send us corrections, updates, or comments. Vaccines and
treatments are complementary. All practical, effective, and safe means should
be used based on risk/benefit analysis. No treatment, vaccine, or intervention
is 100% available and effective for all current and future variants. We do not
provide medical advice. Before taking any medication, consult a qualified
physician who can provide personalized advice and details of risks and
benefits based on your medical history and situation.
FLCCC and
WCH
provide treatment protocols.
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