A drug used to treat parasitic infections in humans and livestock will be investigated as a possible treatment for COVID-19 in a large UK study at the University of Oxford.
The drug, known as Ivermectina, has antiviral properties and initial preliminary studies have shown that can reduce viral load, the amount of virus in the respiratory tract, and the duration of symptoms in people with a mild infection, according to a statement from the university.
Ivermectin has been used for decades to treat cattle infested with parasitic worms, while in humans it is used as a topical ointment for conditions including skin infections. It has already been approved for compassionate use in a controlled access program in South Africa, and health authorities have reported the widespread use of the drug on the black market. The World Health Organization and the European Medicines Agency recommend that it only be used in clinical trials, as more data is needed to support its use.
The drug will be tested as part of the platform for randomized trials of community treatments for epidemic and pandemic diseases, or Principle, the world’s largest clinical trial of potential treatments for the virus in non-hospital settings. Eligible UK participants with COVID-19 symptoms can join the ivermectin trial, which is being evaluated alongside the influenza antiviral favipiravir.
“By including ivermectin in a large-scale trial like Principle, we hope to generate strong evidence to determine how effective the treatment against COVID-19 is and whether there are benefits or harms associated with its use,” said Chris Butler, professor of medicine at the University of Oxford and one of the lead authors of the study.
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