You’ve probably seen news articles about people demanding Ivermectin to prevent or treat Covid-19. I didn’t pay much attention to it because I wasn’t interested. Ivermectin is approved by the FDA to treat certain intestinal parasites and lice in people. It’s also used by veterinarians as a treatment for parasites in pets and livestock—deworming, in other words. It got touted as a treatment for Covid-19 after some Australian researchers discovered that large quantities of it killed the virus in a laboratory setting—in a petri dish, that is. The scientists made it clear that the amount of the drug required to affect the virus was much higher than the amount approved for use in humans. Nevertheless, the news went viral, as they say, and people began demanding the drug.
What did interest me was a letter published in The New
England Journal of Medicine submitted by three doctors associated with
Oregon Health and Science University in Portland, Oregon. The letter gives real-world
examples of the effects Ivermectin on some people who tried it. The Oregon Poison
Center received 21 calls in August 2021, all were from people who had used Ivermectin. Eleven used the drug to prevent Covid and 10 used it to
treat symptoms. Three had received their prescriptions from physicians or
veterinarians; 17 purchased veterinary formulations elsewhere. The source for
one wasn’t known. Six were hospitalized for the toxic effects; four were in intensive care. None died. Their ailments included gastrointestinal
distress, confusion, dizziness, weakness, low blood pressure, seizure, vision
problems, and rash. Note that these are just the cases called into the poison
control center. Perhaps the tip of an iceberg.
I guess they were afraid to get vaccinated.
For an introduction to this blog, see I Just Say No; for a list of blog topics, click the Topics tab.
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