Prominent medical and pharmaceutical groups have reportedly warned against the use of Ivermectin to treat coronavirus patients. Ivermectin is a drug used to treat infections caused by internal and external parasites and is wrongly being used to treat COVID-19.
Groups including the American Medical Association said in a statement that they are concerned about reports that outpatient prescribing and distribution of Ivermectin has increased 24-fold since the pandemic began and has increased dramatically in recent months.
As a result, they are urging a halt on prescribing, dispensing, and using of Ivermectin for COVID-19 prevention and treatment outside of research trials.
As per sources, the medical organizations are joining requests done by the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention and the FDA to ban the unapproved use of the medicine to treat and prevent COVID-19.
The American Medical Association, the American Pharmacists Association, and the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists have all stated that administering Ivermectin in this manner is dangerous to patients.
Ivermectin can cure COVID-19 according to some websites and internet posts. However, some people have reportedly become ill after taking the drug's veterinary version, intended for use on horses and other animals.
The FDA said that while it's understandable that people are looking for novel approaches to treat COVID-19, they should be wary of misinformation.
According to the organizations' statement, calls to poison control centers due to ivermectin intake have climbed five-fold from their pre-pandemic baseline.
Furthermore, medical groups said they are urging doctors, pharmacists, other prescribers, and trusted health professionals in their communities to warn patients about using Ivermectin for human or animal, or outside of FDA-approved uses and advices, as well as purchasing it from online pharmacies.
This medication's veterinary versions are highly concentrated for large animals and offer a major toxicity risk to humans.