The anti-inflammatory drug ivermectin does not significantly reduce the time it takes to recover from Covid, according to a large study posted online Sunday. That is The largest of several clinical trials showing a drug popular since the beginning of the pandemic as an alternative, ineffective treatment against the virus.
The new trial, conducted by researchers at Duke University and Vanderbilt University, tested more than 1,500 people with Covid, about half using the drug and the rest a placebo. The study has yet to be published in a scientific journal.
Dr Adrian Hernandez, executive director of the Duke Clinical Research Institute: “Given these results, it seems unlikely that there is a role for ivermectin outside of the clinical trial setting, especially considering options available options with the potential to reduce hospitalizations and deaths”. who led the trial, said in a statement Sunday night.
In 2020, laboratory experiments on cells showed that ivermectin could block the coronavirus. The results have caused widespread excitement because ivermectin is an inexpensive drug that has been used safely in humans for decades against parasitic worm infections.
The drug has become widely available, despite a lack of results from large randomized clinical trials. When those studies finally ended, they were frustrated. In March, researchers published a study in which 679 people diagnosed with Covid received ivermectin. The drug did not significantly reduce the risk of going to the hospital for Covid compared with people taking a placebo.
The new study of ivermectin is part of a larger effort, organized by the National Institutes of Health, to identify existing drugs that could help treat Covid. Known as Accelerated COVID-19 Treatment and Vaccine Interventions-6, or ACTIV-6 for short, the program also tested an antidepressant and an anti-asthma drug.
Dr Hernandez and his colleagues injected ivermectin to 877 volunteers diagnosed with Covid, while another 774 received a placebo. The researchers then watched how their cases progressed.
Those taking ivermectin felt unwell for an average of 10.96 days, while those taking a placebo took 11.45 days – a difference of about 12 hours. There was no statistically significant difference in the risk that each group faced when visiting the hospital. One death was observed during the trial – of a volunteer receiving ivermectin.
Nearly half of the volunteers were vaccinated, the researchers said. Their snapshot may have reduced the total number of severe Covid cases, making benefit detection more difficult.
Despite the negative results, the researchers do not completely rule out the possibility that ivermectin may have a place in the treatment of Covid. Of the 90 people who had severe Covid when they joined the trial, those who tried ivermectin appeared to do better than those who took a placebo. But the small numbers make it impossible to draw any firm statistical conclusions about the benefits of ivermectin. The effect can be the result of chance.
To further investigate that outcome, the researchers will continue to test ivermectin at higher doses. A new group of volunteers will receive 50% more of the drug in each dose and for six days instead of three.
“Given the favorable safety profile and public interest in ivermectin, the ACTIV-6 team will continue to study this higher dose to determine if it is enough to make a difference to be considered. mild to moderate COVID-19 treatment. ,” Dr. Susanna Naggie, an infectious disease specialist at Duke University, said in the statement.
