Another look at the Ivermectin evidence

Setting the Record Straight on Ivermectin | Brownstone Institute - David R. Henderson & Charles L. Hooper:

December 14, 2022 - "If you’ve followed the news closely over the last two years, you’ve probably heard a few things about ivermectin. First, that it’s a veterinary medicine intended for horses and cows. Second, that the FDA and other government regulatory agencies recommended against its use for COVID-19. Third, that even the inventor and manufacturer of ivermectin, Merck & Co., came out against it. Fourth, that one of the largest studies showing that ivermectin worked for COVID-19 was retracted for data fraud. And, finally, that the largest and best study of ivermectin, the TOGETHER trial, showed that ivermectin didn’t work.

"Let’s consider the evidence.

"Ivermectin has a distinguished history, and it may have benefits comparable to those of penicillin. The anti-parasitic’s discovery led to a Nobel Prize and subsequent billions of safe administrations around the world, even among children and pregnant women. 'Ivermectin is widely available worldwide, inexpensive, and one of the safest drugs in modern medicine'

"The FDA put out a special warning against using ivermectin for COVID-19. The FDA’s warning, which included language such as, 'serious harm,' 'hospitalized,' 'dangerous,' 'very dangerous,' 'seizures,' 'coma and even death,' and 'highly toxic,' might suggest that the FDA was warning against pills laced with poison, not a drug the FDA had already approved as safe. Why did it become dangerous when used for COVID-19? The FDA didn’t say. Because of the FDA’s rules, if it were to make any statement on ivermectin, it was obliged to attack it. The FDA prohibits the promotion of drugs for unapproved uses. Since fighting SARS-CoV-2 was an unapproved use of ivermectin, the FDA couldn’t have advocated use...

"Ivermectin’s discoverer, Merck & Co., had multiple reasons to disparage its own drug. Merck, too, couldn’t have legally 'promoted' ivermectin for COVID-19 without a full FDA approval.... Plus, Merck doesn’t make much money from cheap, generic ivermectin but was hoping to find success with its new, expensive drug, Lagevrio (molnupiravir).

"A large study of ivermectin for COVID-19 by Elgazzar et al. was withdrawn over charges of plagiarism and faked data. Many media reports seem fixated on this one dubious study, but it was one of many clinical studies. After the withdrawn studies have been removed from consideration, there are 15 trials that suggest that ivermectin doesn’t work for COVID-19 and 78 that do. 

"The TOGETHER trial received significant positive press.... While the Elgazzar paper was quickly dismissed, the TOGETHER trial was acclaimed. It shouldn’t have been. Researchers who have analyzed it have found 31 critical problems (impossible data; extreme conflicts of interest; blinding failure), 22 serious problems (results were delayed six months; conflicting data), and 21 major problems (multiple, conflicting randomization protocols) with it. 

"While the popular narrative is that the TOGETHER trial showed that ivermectin didn’t work for COVID-19, the actual results belie that conclusion: ivermectin was associated with a 12 percent lower risk of death, a 23 percent lower risk of mechanical ventilation, a 17 percent lower risk of hospitalization, and a 10 percent lower risk of extended ER observation or hospitalization. We have calculated that the probability that ivermectin helped the patients in the TOGETHER trial ranged from 26 percent for the median number of days to clinical recovery to 91 percent for preventing hospitalization. The TOGETHER trial’s results should be reported accurately.

"Based on the clinical evidence from the 93 trials that ivermectin reduced mortality by an average of 51 percent, and on the estimated infection fatality rate of COVID-19,  about 400 infected Americans aged 60-69 would need to be treated with ivermectin to statistically prevent one death in that group. The total cost of the ivermectin to prevent that one death: $40,000. (Based on the GoodRx website, a generic prescription for ivermectin is priced at approximately $40. Roughly 2.5 prescriptions would be needed per person to receive the average dose of 150 mg per patient.) 

"How much is your life worth? We’re betting it’s worth far more than $40,000.

"When the next pandemic strikes, by necessity we’ll rely on older drugs because newer ones require years of development. Ivermectin is a repurposed drug that helps, and could have helped so much more. It deserves recognition, not disparagement. What we really need, however, is a way to inoculate ourselves against the lies and misrepresentations of powerful public figures, organizations, and drug companies. Sadly, there are no such vaccines for that contagion."

Read more: https://brownstone.org/articles/setting-record-straight-on-ivermectin/

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License

NH House votes for OTC sale of ivermectin

New Hampshire legislature as a shining star for medical freedom | Blaze News - Daniel Horowitz:

March 18, 2022 - ""With people still dying of COVID without effective treatment, the New Hampshire House became the first legislative body to pass a bill essentially allowing citizens to access ivermectin over the counter at a pharmacy. On Wednesday, by a vote of 183-159, the House approved HB 1022, legislation allowing pharmacists to make ivermectin available via standing order from a physician or nurse practitioner that allows a pharmacist to dispense a medication without an individual prescription....

"All but two Republicans voted for HB 1022, and all but two Democrats opposed it.... Legislat[or]s I’ve spoken to in New Hampshire credit Dr. Paul Marik, a prominent ICU doctor, who gave an impassioned testimony on how this drug has helped him save so many patients sick with COVID.

"The ivermectin bill wasn’t the only success this [session] for advocates of medical freedom. The New Hampshire House successfully passed the following bills seeking to redress the civil liberties issues from the past two years:

1. HB 1268: A ban on localities implementing mask mandates.
2. HB 1379: Repealing the health commissioner’s authority to add a vaccine to the school schedule of required shots.
3. HB 1439: Requiring hospitals to allow patients to have visitors.... 
4. HB 1455: Prohibiting state enforcement of vaccine mandates and data collection.
5. HB 1495: Prohibiting the state and its political subdivisions from requiring a private business to have a vaccine mandate.
6. HB 1044: Allowing the creation of new health care facilities that only take direct payment, thereby bypassing the medical cartel, federal COVID restrictions, and other onerous federal regulations.
7. HB 1280: Prohibiting judges from using a parent’s refusal to vaccinate their child as basis for abridging parental rights.
8. HB 1606: To become the first state to require a patient to opt in to the vaccine registry in order for his or her vaccination status to be recorded.
9. HB 1131: Prohibits public schools from requiring masks to attend....

"Three freshmen female representatives, Leah Cushman, Erica Layon, and Melissa Blasek, were instrumental in the push for medical freedom bills this session.... I asked Blasek why she felt there was more success in New Hampshire than in other states with far superior GOP majorities. The young mother, who works as a music teacher and ran for office exclusively on fighting for medical freedom, told me that there were numerous factors at play. 'New Hampshire has a strong tradition of freedom, and the voters on both sides of the aisle tend to be wary of government intervention,' said Blasek. 'It may have taken two years, but they’ve had it with the authoritarian response, and I think the politicians feel that.'

"Blasek notes that usually the grassroots fail at first and then get discouraged, but in New Hampshire they came back the second session to retry bills that failed last year.... She also credits the newly formed House Freedom Caucus, which was buttressed by representatives endorsed by Rebuild NH, an activist group she co-founded to fight the COVID response, for 'making a lot of noise in the House and pushing the rest of the Republican caucus in this direction.' Blasek also notes that, unlike in other GOP-controlled bodies, 'our leadership is liberty-minded and likely the best leadership anywhere in the country'....

"Whether the New Hampshire Senate will pass the bills with as much support as the House is yet to be determined. Gov. Chris Sununu has also been surprisingly quiet about all of these bills.... However, the strong show of force from New Hampshire House members and the grassroots involved demonstrates that the Granite State might serve as the cold-weather alternative to Florida for those seeking to preserve our most important liberties."

Read more: https://www.theblaze.com/op-ed/horowitz-new-hampshire-legislature-as-a-shining-star-for-medical-freedom

Misinformation about ivermectin

by George J. Dance

As readers know, the blog is interested in possible treatments for Covid19. I do not think, like some, that vaccines make those unnecessary; even if it were true (which it is not) that vaccines provided complete protection against catching covid, they would still be useless for those who have already caught it. Plenty of people are still catching it these days, many of whom had no access to a vaccine anyway (either because it was not available, or due to government restrictions). So Covid medicines and treatments should concern us. 

One of the medicines I have blogged about is ivermectin (IVM); some of those stories have been encouraging, but the truth is still out there. We are a long way from having all the data we need on the drug's efficacy, or possibly (despite its 40 years of approved use as a human medicine) even on its safety. That is why this weekend's news from Oklahoma was so alarming. I have seen plenty of stories about ivermectin poisoning before, but those usually concluded, like this recent report from Mississippi, that "No one has been hospitalized" from ingesting it. The news out of Oklahoma was different.    

According to the story, first reported on KFOR-TV (video below), eastern Oklahoma was seeing an epidemic of people being hospitalized for overdosing on IVM. So many were being hospitalized, in fact, that local hospitals were overwhelmed and on the verge of collapse. That story was picked up by, among others, BBC News, yahoo news, Newsweek, the New York Daily News, The Guardian, The Independent,  MSN.com, and even Rolling Stone magazine. As the last reported, under the title "Gunshot Victims Left Waiting as Horse Dewormer Overdoses Overwhelm Oklahoma Hospitals, Doctor Says":  

The rise in people using ivermectin, an anti-parasitic drug usually reserved for deworming horses or livestock, as a treatment or preventative for Covid-19 has emergency rooms “so backed up that gunshot victims were having hard times getting” access to health facilities, an emergency room doctor in Oklahoma said.

This week, Dr. Jason McElyea told KFOR the overdoses are causing backlogs in rural hospitals, leaving both beds and ambulance services scarce.

“The ERs are so backed up that gunshot victims were having hard times getting to facilities where they can get definitive care and be treated,” McElyea said.

“All of their ambulances are stuck at the hospital waiting for a bed to open so they can take the patient in and they don’t have any, that’s it,” said McElyea. “If there’s no ambulance to take the call, there’s no ambulance to come to the call.”

The doctor added that IVM OD victims "have arrived at hospitals with negative reactions like nausea, vomiting, muscle aches, and cramping — or even loss of sight. 'The scariest one that I’ve heard of and seen is people coming in with vision loss,' the doctor said."

The one thing that amazed me was that there was no attempt to corroborate Dr. McElyea's report, or to factcheck it either; it was reported as a factual account requiring no independent support. Rolling Stone did cite a story in Tulsa World, which reported that  "a rural emergency room physician, had a gunshot victim in his facility whom for hours he was unable to transfer to a higher level of care because no one had space." However, (1) the gist of that article was that a surge in patients suffering from Covid (not IVM overdoses, which were not mentioned) was causing the problem; and (2) the physician in question turned out to be Dr. McElyea himself.  

Not one of the media outlets running the story bothered to pick up a telephone, or get onto the internet, and check with a single Oklahoma hospital. Only one source, BBC News, bothered even to speak with Dr. McElyea to verify his quotes. What McElyea told the BBC, though, was only that "a 'handful' of people overdosing on [IVM] were putting further strain on hospital staff already stretched by a surge in Covid cases." Oklahoma hospitals were being overwhelmed, but by Covid cases, not by "horse dewormer overdoses."

After reading the BBC story, I began thinking that McElyea's original remarks had been either misunderstood, or misrepresented for the sake of a better story, by the KFOR reporter, Katelynn Ogle. Meanswhile, over at Reason magazine, Robby Soave had reached a similar conclusion:

One might be tempted to blame McElyea for embellishing his story.... But a closer look at the KFOR story reveals something quite startling: At no point did McElyea actually come out and say that ivermectin overdoses were straining hospitals.... McElyea clearly states that ivermectin overdoses have been a problem, and he claims that some hospitals are dealing with strain. But he never actually connects these two issues. It was the journalist, Ogle, who added that framing. She did not respond to a request for comment.

Eventually a statement was issued by an Oklahoma hospital where Dr. McElyea has worked. There turned out to a few discrepancies between their account and the TV station's: 

Although Dr. Jason McElyea is not an employee of NHS Sequoyah, he is affiliated with a medical staffing group that provides coverage for our emergency room. With that said, Dr. McElyea has not worked at our Sallisaw location in over 2 months. NHS Sequoyah has not treated any patients due to complications related to taking ivermectin. This includes not treating any patients for ivermectin overdose. All patients who have visited our emergency room have received medical attention as appropriate. Our hospital has not had to turn away any patients seeking emergency care. 

Once again, no hospitalizations due to use of IVM. But that was not the end of the story. A day later, a second hospital had issued its own statement, which confirmed Dr. McElyea's claims about IVM overdoses. However, the same statement also noted that the doctor had repudiated the KFOR story: 

Jason McElyea, D.O. ... has privileges at INTEGRIS Grove Hospital. He also works in several other emergency departments in rural Oklahoma. There is a lot of media attention surrounding remarks reportedly made by Dr. McElyea. While we do not speak on his behalf, he has publicly said his comments were misconstrued and taken out of context. What we can confirm is that we have seen a handful of ivermectin patients in our emergency rooms.... And ... while our hospitals are not filled with people who have taken ivermectin, such patients are adding to the congestion already caused by COVID-19 and other emergencies. 

That looks like the end of the story. Dr. McElyea had told KFOR-TV about this "handful" of IVM overdoses (the same word the BBC quoted him as using), some of which might have led to hospitalization (though the hospital does not confirm that any did). KFOR-TV selectively used the good doctor's recorded comments to construct a piece of fake news, and thereby spread misinformation.  

Updated, September 8, 2021

One more thing needs to be said on the subject. While the above story was pure misinformation, there was a real problem throughout the summer, not just in Oklahoma, with some people eating horse dewormer paste, and other livestock medications containing IVM, and accidentally overdosing. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) found it necessary to issue an advisory warning:

Never use medications intended for animals on yourself or other people. Animal ivermectin products are very different from those approved for humans. Use of animal ivermectin for the prevention or treatment of COVID-19 in humans is dangerous.... animal drugs are often highly concentrated because they are used for large animals like horses and cows, which weigh a lot more than we do — a ton or more. Such high doses can be highly toxic in humans. Moreover, the FDA reviews drugs not just for safety and effectiveness of the active ingredients, but also for the inactive ingredients. Many inactive ingredients found in  products for animals aren’t evaluated for use in people.

While the FDA considers both human- and animal-formulated IVM to be ineffective, it calls only "Use of animal ivermectin for the prevention or treatment of COVID-19 in humans" dangerous. IVM for humans is formulated in a dosage safe for humans, and uses only ingredients that the FDA has approved for use in humans. So why were so many people taking animal-formulated products like horse dewormer paste instead? 

The answer is simple: The FDA has approved the over-the-counter (OTC) sale of horse dewormer paste; but it has not allowed the OTC sale of IVM formulated for humans. To get the latter, those wishing to try the medicine need a doctor's prescription, which creates a high (in some cases impassable) barrier to access. If Americans could buy ivermectin for humans OTC, there would have been no reason for them to eat horse dewormer paste instead. That the horse dewormer epidemic happened at all was solely due to the FDA's own regulations; any increased danger to Americans caused by it was danger caused by the FDA itself. 

(It is theoretically possible to overdose on human-formulated IVM. However, the chance of that is extremely improbable; not only is the dosage fully controlled, but the labelling and the pharmacist are both available to instruct users on how to safely use it.)  

In the above video, Dr. McElyea says: "There’s a reason you have to have a doctor to get a prescription for this stuff because it can be dangerous.' However, in this case it looks like the doctor reversed causation. Ivermectin was only dangerous, in this instance, because Americans were taking an unsafe formulation; and they were taking an unsafe formulation because without a doctor's approval they could not take a safe one. 

Updated December 8, 2021

Ivermectin reduces severity of Covid infection, Pasteur Institute finds

Ivermectin reduces 'the severity of infection' with Covid-19, according to the Pasteur Institute - RT France (Google translated):

July 14, 2020 - "The Pasteur Institute is fueling the debate on ivermectin. The research center unveiled on July 12 a study on the effects of this antiparasitic treatment against Covid-19, which concludes that 'taking this drug at standard doses makes it possible to reduce in an animal model the symptoms and the severity of SARS-CoV-2 infection'. The work of the scientists of the institute, published in the journal of the European Organization of Molecular Biology, thus underline that the ivermectin molecule causes 'a limitation of the inflammation of the respiratory tract and the symptoms which result from it' and 'protection against loss of smell'. 

"[T]he treatment does not seem to act on viral replication: 'The treated and untreated models had similar amounts of viral load in the nasal cavity and in the lungs. Our results show that ivermectin has an immunomodulatory and not an antiviral effect,' explained Guilherme Dias de Melo, epidemiologist and co-author of the study. Hervé Bourhy, head of unit at the Institut Pasteur who also took part in the work, nevertheless believes that these 'results provide significant progress and [...] pave the way for development axes for better treatments against Covid -19 in humans'. 

"Ivermectin is an antiparasitic commonly used against parasites such as scabies, onchocerciasis (river blindness) or lice. The drug is the subject of a promotional campaign on the networks, in particular since an Australian study published in the spring of 2020 had observed an in vitro efficacy of the ivermectin molecule on Sars-CoV-2. 

"But on March 31, a WHO [World Health Organization] clinical team said that the data from studies to measure their effectiveness against Covid-19 had not provided convincing results.... In addition, the manufacturer of the drug, Merck, assured on February 4 that the idea of ​​a 'potential therapeutic effect against Covid-19 has no scientific basis'.... 

"'Most often carried out in emerging countries, these clinical trials did not meet the conditions required for the testing of drugs in our country. This has led to criticism both within the World Health Organization and within the Directorate-General for Health' explained ... Jean-Pierre Changeux, famous neurobiologist co-signatory of the French study. Another factor, 'the controversy around hydroxychloroquine [another antiparasitic] has greatly affected the objective evaluation of ivermectin', argued the researcher. 

"[T]he institute's team followed a path developed over the past year by Jean-Pierre Changeux with Zahir Amoura, from Pitié-Salpêtrière. In March 2020, one of the latter's interns wondered about Chinese studies showing a low number of smokers among the sick. They then worked on the protection potential of nicotine against Covid-19. The two scientists started from the idea that the virus enters the body through the nicotinic receptor, a protein contained in neurons that Jean-Pierre Changeux himself had discovered and isolated in 1970. 'Our hypothesis is that the coronavirus would block directly or indirectly this receptor and that ivermectin could reactivate it' explained the neurobiologist.... 

"Despite the disavowal of the WHO, the drug has already met with success in several countries such as Brazil, Lebanon and South Africa. In Indonesia, AFP reports that pharmacies are facing a rush on ivermectin. Also in India, where a collective of lawyers from Bombay has announced that it is launching a lawsuit against Soumya Swaminathan, a pediatrician specializing in tuberculosis and scientific director of the WHO. Indian lawyers accuse him of dismissing evidence in favor of ivermectin, of having tweeted advising against its use (which they liken to disinformation leading to deaths), and of promoting laboratories that produce vaccines."

Read more: https://francais.rt.com/france/88707-ivermectine-reduit-gravite-infection-covid-19-selon-institut-pasteur

Read study: https://www.pasteur.fr/fr/espace-presse/documents-presse/ivermectine-attenue-symptomes-covid-19-modele-animal

Ivermectin cuts Covid deaths, review study shows

Data Supports Use of Anti-Parasitic Drug Ivermectin in COVID-19 Patients, Study Shows | BioSpace - Alex Keown:

June 21, 2021 - "Use of the anti-parasitic drug ivermectin could reduce COVID-19-related deaths, data from a peer-reviewed study shows. The study, published last week in the American Journal of Therapeutics, analyzed data from multiple clinical studies assessing ivermectin as a potential treatment for COVID-19. Ivermectin, which is approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as a treatment for intestinal strongyloidiasis and onchocerciasis, which are two conditions caused by parasitic worms, has anti-inflammatory properties....

"First reported by The Epoch Times, the data showed ivermectin reduced the risk of death in mild-to-moderate patients by an average of 62%. The study data further suggests that risk of death was found to be 2.3% among hospitalized patients treated with ivermectin, compared to 7.8% for those who were not. The team did note that there may be no benefit for patients who are in need of mechanical ventilation.

"'Moderate-certainty evidence finds that large reductions in COVID-19 deaths are possible using ivermectin. Using ivermectin early in the clinical course may reduce numbers progressing to severe disease. The apparent safety and low cost suggest that ivermectin is likely to have a significant impact on the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic globally,' the study authors concluded.

"As BioSpace has previously reported, researchers in Australia showed in a laboratory setting that treatment with ivermectin inhibited the COVID-19 virus within 24 to 48 hours of treatment. The preclinical data showed that ivermectin prevented the virus’ RNA from replicating. That particular test showed that ivermectin targets the SARS-CoV-2 virus like a parasite.

"The latest assessment of those multiple studies seems to confirm the potential of ivermectin against COVID-19. However, the FDA currently maintains a web page warning against the unauthorized use of ivermectin to treat the virus. The FDA said it has received multiple reports of patients who have required medical support and been hospitalized after self-medicating with ivermectin that had been approved for use as an anti-parasitic drug in animals.... The FDA notes that clinical studies are underway assessing ivermectin against COVID-19, but until those are reviewed and confirmed, it will warn against taking unauthorized medication."

Read more: https://www.biospace.com/article/data-supports-use-of-anti-parasitic-drug-ivermectin-in-covid-19-patients-study-shows/

Read study: https://journals.lww.com/americantherapeutics/abstract/9000/ivermectin_for_prevention_and_treatment_of.98040.aspx

NY patients win court battles to use ivermectin

Ivermectin Wins in Court Again: For Human Rights | Deseret News - Justus R. Hope, MD:

Apr 19, 2021 - "One dose of Ivermectin was all it took to get 81-year-old John Swanson off the ventilator. John’s wife Sandra could not believe it. His story is remarkably similar to other cases.... 

"Ralph Lorigo is the lawyer who now has won three court orders forcing New York hospitals to administer Ivermectin to dying patients. Incredibly, these three hospitals and their lawyers fought against the patients, arguing they did not have the right to receive the drug despite a valid prescription written by their doctors. In essence, the argument was that they did not have the right to try a potentially life-saving medication.

"In each of the three cases, the New York State Supreme Court Justices sided with the patient, and in each of the three cases, the patients made near-miraculous recoveries after the Ivermectin was given. In each case, these patients were in the Intensive Care Unit on ventilators, unable to breathe on their own, and universally, after the drug was given, they rapidly improved and were able to breathe on their own.

"Judith Smentkiewicz made national news in January when her family hired Lorigo after the hospital refused a fourth dose of Ivermectin..... Attorney Lorigo and his associate Jon F. Minear reported, 'This lady was on a ventilator, literally on her deathbed, before she was given this drug. As far as we’re concerned, the judge’s order saved this woman’s life.'

"The family of Glenna "Sue" Dickinson happened to see a newspaper article of Judith's remarkable story, and they decided to try Ivermectin as well. Sue Dickinson, 65, contracted COVID-19 on January 7, 2021 ...  and was placed on a ventilator on January 17. The hospital staff advised that her chances of survival were about 40 percent [but] refused to give Sue the Ivermectin. Lorigo and Minear  sought an injunction. State Supreme Court Justice Frank Caruso ordered the hospital to provide the Ivermectin. Dickinson, like Swanson, and Smentkiewicz, came off the ventilator and improved as well.... 

"Ivermectin is widely used by physicians, as there are now 51 studies from around the world, with 50 showing clear benefit and one showing neutral.... Experts worldwide have called for the global and systematic use of Ivermectin to prevent and treat COVID-19. Physicians have recently written about a profit motive by regulatory agencies and Big Pharma to block cheap, safe, and effective treatments like Ivermectin and HCQ [hydroxychloroquine] in favor of ... vaccines and medicines like Remdesivir.... Remdesivir cost[s] $3,100 per dose [while] Ivermectin costs about $2 per dose. It is safer than Tylenol or most vitamins, says Dr. Pierre Kory of the FLCCC Alliance, a group of expert physicians promoting access and information through a nonprofit organization. Dr. Kory and Mr. Lorigo have teamed up to help other hospitalized patients gain access to the life-saving drug....

"The big problem is that information promoting Ivermectin is often censored or silenced as quickly as it is provided. Facebook, Reddit, Change.org, YouTube, and others have recently taken down posts on Ivermectin citing violation of 'community standards.'  Physicians who employ good judgment and scientific studies are considered violators, as well as those who publish factual accounts of Ivermectin-based recovery stories. A recent article exposed the link between large pharmaceutical corporations and government regulatory agencies who have financial entanglements and massive conflicts of interest.

"The disinformation campaign is evident with the publication of articles attempting to cast Ivermectin in a false light, referring to it as an 'animal dewormer' that might be a 'bad idea' for humans to use. In reality, many drugs are common to both humans and animals for treatment, including antibiotics, antifungals, and antiparasitic agents....

"Satoshi Omura won the 2015 Nobel Prize in Medicine for his discoveries leading to the development of Ivermectin. In his praise for Ivermectin and its potential to help in the COVID-19 pandemic, Dr. Omura recently compared Ivermectin to Penicillin, 'one of the greatest discoveries of the twentieth century'.... Ivermectin has already been adopted by 25 percent of the world’s countries to prevent and treat COVID-19.... However, censorship, corruption, hospital lawyers, and disinformation campaigns have continued to stand in the way of its widespread acceptance in the United States. Many have never even heard of it.

"Ivermectin recently won in court in South Africa after a protracted legal battle. Ralph Lorigo has now won his third State Supreme Court Injunction in New York. Will legal strategies also be required in the US to gain FDA approval for Ivermectin to treat COVID-19?"

Read more: https://www.thedesertreview.com/opinion/letters_to_editor/ivermectin-wins-in-court-again-for-human-rights/article_98d26958-a13a-11eb-a698-37c06f632875.html

Ivermectin cut COVID deaths 75%, study says

New study suggests ivermectin cuts Covid infections by around 75 per cent | Daily Mail - David Rose: 

February 24, 2021 - "A cheap and safe drug widely used against parasites cuts Covid infections, hospitalisations and deaths by about 75 per cent, a study shows. [A review of] More than 30 trials across the world found that ivermectin causes ‘repeated, consistent, large magnitude improvements in clinical outcomes’ at all stages of the disease. The peer-reviewed study, to be published in the US journal Frontiers of Pharmacology, says the evidence is so strong that the drug – used to treat head lice and scabies – should become a standard therapy everywhere, so hastening the global recovery. 

"Study co-author Professor Paul Marik, director of emergency and pulmonary care at the Eastern Virginia Medical School in the US, said: ‘The data is overwhelming – we are in a pandemic, and this is an incredibly effective way to combat it. If we use ivermectin widely, our societies can open up’....

"An earlier study by Professor Andrew Hill of Liverpool University also concluded that ivermectin cuts death rates by around three-quarters.... He recommended there should be larger trials before it was approved by UK regulators. A new trial of ivermectin as a Covid treatment is due to start shortly at Oxford University.

"Dr Tess Lawrie, director of the Evidence-Based Medicine Consultancy in Bath, convened an online summit of international experts last weekend to discuss the new data. It included evidence that widespread use of ivermectin in parts of India and South America has led to a big reduction in infections and deaths. Yesterday Dr Lawrie submitted a 97-page report to the World Health Organisation, urging it immediately to recommend ivermectin to treat Covid. 

'The drug, taken in tablet form or as drops, is licensed in Britain only as a treatment for parasitic worms, head lice and scabies. It has been used by hundreds of millions of patients over the past 30 years, mainly in developing countries, and at around £50 per patient – less in some countries – is far cheaper than other new Covid treatments, such as the rheumatism drug tocilizumab, which costs £1,000 per patient.

'The UK’s Medicines and Healthcare Regulatory Agency said it was aware of the global study into the use of ivermectin to treat Covid-19 and that its evidence would be reviewed."

Read more: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9297449/Drug-used-treat-lice-scabies-drug-cut-Covid-deaths-75-research-suggests.html

Read study: https://covid19criticalcare.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/FLCCC-Ivermectin-in-the-prophylaxis-and-treatment-of-COVID-19.pdf

Big Pharma throws ivermectin under the bus

The fight against low-cost and highly effective Ivermectin has begun - Swiss Policy Research:

February 6, 2021 - "Dozens of studies and several meta-studies have already found low-cost ivermectin to be highly effective against covid. In January, even the US NIH [National Institutes of Health] had to change its stance from ‘negative’ to ‘neutral’. Detractors of ivermectin had to act,...

"In their fight against low-cost HCQ [hydroxychloroquine] – which was also found to be effective in the early treatment of high-risk patients, thanks to its anti-inflammatory and anti-thrombotic properties – detractors published a made-up study in the Lancet (the Surgisphere scandal) and ran trials with toxic overdoses in ICU patients (the ‘SOLIDARITY’ and ‘RECOVERY’ trials). But Ivermectin is very difficult to overdose, and unlike HCQ, it works as a prophylaxis against infection and even in ICU patients. Thus, it would be much more difficult to design a deceptive study against ivermectin.

"Finally, a ‘solution’ was found: US pharmaceutical company Merck – one of the manufacturers of patent-free Ivermectin – has just published a statement simply claiming, without evidence, that their (unpublished) 'analysis' had 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.'

"An NIH operative quickly retweeted the Merck statement, adding: 'Merck’s statement on ivermectin is the leadership and commitment to quality translational science that we need to see from pharma/biotech.' In reality, Merck’s claim is completely baseless and also ironic: after having safely sold ivermectin for several decades, Merck now suddenly questions its safety....

"Merck recently signed a $356 million deal to supply the US with a much more expensive, newly developed experimental anti-covid drug. Meanwhile, Youtube removed a C-SPAN video of FLCCC President Dr Pierre Kory’s US Senate testimony on ivermectin....

"[A] low-cost and highly effective drug against covid, like Ivermectin, would disrupt not only the multi-billion dollar global vaccine campaign (which does indeed lack long-term safety and efficacy data), but also follow-up ‘lock step’ policies like vaccine passports, smartphone-based global contact monitoring, as well as programs like ID2020 and ‘Known Traveler’ promoted by vaccine investor Bill Gates, the World Economic Forum, and similar groups."

Read more: https://swprs.org/fight-against-ivermectin-begins/

Some countries allow ivermectin use to treat Covid

Use of parasite medication to treat coronavirus patients approved in Slovakia | Slovak Spectator: 

January 27, 2021 - "Ivermectin, a medication used to treat many types of parasite infestations, can now be used to treat coronavirus patients in hospitals and obtained from pharmacies with a prescription. The Health Ministry approved the therapeutic use of this medication for six months. It will be used with other treatments, its spokesperson Zuzana Eliášová said, as reported by the TASR newswire.

"The medication can be legally imported to Slovakia and given to patients. With such a step, the ministry fulfilled the request of the association of Slovak anaesthetists, the Denník N daily reported. Until now, Ivermectin was officially approved to be used only for animals, which is why people generally buy it abroad."

Read more: https://spectator.sme.sk/c/22583299/use-of-parasite-medication-to-treat-coronavirus-patients-approved-in-slovakia.html

South Africa Allows Use of Parasite Drug in Covid Patients | Bloomberg - Janice Kew:

January 27, 2021 - "South African authorities approved the use of a drug used to control parasites in humans and livestock to treat coronavirus patients. The medicine, known as ivermectin, will be allowed for use on compassionate grounds in a controlled-access program, the head of the South African Health Products Regulatory Authority said Wednesday. Medical practitioners who apply to the regulator to use the drug will be considered on a case-by-case basis, Boitumelo Semete-Makokotlela said.

"Ivermectin has been used for decades to treat livestock infested with parasitic worms, while in humans it’s used as a topical ointment for diseases including skin infections and inflammation. The World Health Organization has suggested the drug has encouraging effects on coronavirus, though like other regulators it’s also said the medication hasn’t been properly evaluated. The drug won’t be limited to patients with known Covid-19 co-morbidities, Semete-Makokotlela said.

"The regulator is already seeing widespread use of ivermectin in an emerging black market, as South Africa grapples with a second wave of coronavirus infections that’s resulted in hospital admissions soaring and a shortage of critical-care beds. Allowing controlled use of the drug will help the regulator monitor its use and enable the body to collect much-needed safety data."

Read more: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-01-27/south-africa-allows-use-of-parasite-drug-to-treat-covid-patients

Zimbabwe OKs use of Ivermectin after officials' deaths | Anadolu Agency - John Cassim:

January 28, 2021 - "Zimbabwe has approved the use and import of the anti-parasite drug Ivermectin to treat COVID-19 patients. 

"'In these difficult times of COVID-19 treatment, we have to be careful to protect patients as well as not to deny them effective treatment regimes,” said a statement by the Health Ministry addressed to the Medicines Control Authority of Zimbabwe (MCAZ). 'It is in this regard, the authority is hereby granted for you to proceed to allow importation and use of these medicines under the supervision and guidance you outlined. Ivermectin can be evaluated for both treatment and prophylaxis,' the ministry said.

"This ministry’s decision comes a few days after the deaths of three cabinet ministers and several top government officials from COVID-19 in a short period of time. Owing to the fact that Ivermectin was not registered for use in Zimbabwe, COVID-19 patients ended up using the Ivermectin product meant for animals....

"Two weeks ago, the medicines control body threatened to arrest anyone found to be administering Ivermectin to humans."

Read more: https://www.aa.com.tr/en/africa/zimbabwe-oks-use-of-ivermectin-after-officials-deaths/2125442

ICU MD pleads for review of Covid 'wonder drug'

Doctor pleads for review of data on ivermectin as COVID-19 treatment during Senate hearing | Fox 6 - Kelly Hayes:

December 8, 2020 - "As researchers around the world search to find existing drugs that can be repurposed to treat COVID-19, the potential effectiveness of one drug was highlighted in a Senate hearing on early treatment for the virus. Ivermectin is an approved anti-parasitic drug known to be effective against a variety of viruses like influenza, dengue, and Zika. Dr. Pierre Kory, a pulmonary and critical care specialist, passionately testified Tuesday before the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs during a hearing on 'Early Outpatient Treatment: An Essential Part of a COVID-19 Solution.' 

"In his testimony, Kory said data shows the ability of ivermectin to prevent COVID-19, as well as its ability to keep those with early symptoms from progressing to the hyper-inflammatory phase of the disease, and to help critically ill patients recover. 'People are dying at unacceptable and untold rates,' Kory told the Senate panel. 'I am a lung and ICU specialist, and all I do right now is take care of COVID-19 patients dying of breathlessness in ICUs. By the time they get to the ICU, it is nearly impossible to save most patients. They simply cannot breathe.'

"Kory is also president of the Frontline COVID-19 Critical Care (FLCCC) Alliance, a nonprofit made up of critical care experts and researchers from around the world. The organization was formed in March at the onset of the pandemic and has been 'working tirelessly reviewing the world’s literature on almost every aspect of this disease,' Kory said. He called upon the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to review the latest medical research on the drug as a COVID-19 treatment....

"The FLCCC Alliance has compiled a manuscript detailing results from more than 20 studies on the subject, with more than 10 of them being randomized controlled trials. One study published on Dec. 2 in the International Journal of Infectious Diseases found that a five-day course of ivermectin was found to be safe and effective in treating mild COVID-19 adult patients. The trial involved 72 hospitalized patients in Bangladesh, and researchers said larger trials are needed to confirm the preliminary findings. Another large study, published in November as a preprint, found the addition of ivermectin to standard care to be a 'very effective drug for treatment of COVID-19 patients with significant reduction in mortality compared to hydroxychloroquine plus standard treatment only.'

"While many medications continue to be studied and tested, the FDA has approved only one antiviral drug called remdesivir to treat COVID-19 in adults and children ages 12 and older."

Read more: https://www.fox6now.com/news/doctor-pleads-for-review-of-data-on-ivermectin-as-covid-19-treatment-during-senate-hearing

Front Line COVID-19 Critical Care Alliance