(ORDO NEWS) — A new large study has shown that giving ivermectin to patients at high risk of contracting COVID-19 does not reduce the severity of the disease. Another confirmation that treating covid with a remedy for worms in horses is not the wisest decision
Ivermectin is the active ingredient in many of the available antiparasitic drugs used to treat parasites and mange in livestock.
Following research suggesting the drug may also have some antiviral properties in isolated laboratory conditions, ivermectin has become widely popular as an alternative treatment for COVID-19, although subsequent experiments have shown no benefit of the drug when used in humans.
In the new study, published in the journal JAMA Internal Medicine , scientists recruited a group of 500 COVID-19 patients aged 50 years and older with confirmed comorbidities who were at risk for severe coronavirus symptoms.
Participants were divided into two groups: the first received a five-day course of ivermectin along with standard therapy in the first week after the onset of symptoms. The second received only standard care. The researchers followed each of the participants, observing the symptoms and course of the disease.
In the standard care-only group, 43 of 249 patients (17.3%) developed severe disease, while 52 of 241 patients (21.6%) who received ivermectin had a similar outcome.
The researchers concluded that ivermectin is not effective when used by patients during the early onset of COVID-19 symptoms and does not affect the severity of the disease.
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