Ivermectin effective in treating outpatients with mild to
moderate COVID-19 suggests a recent study published in the JAMA.
The effectiveness of ivermectin to shorten symptom duration
or prevent hospitalization among outpatients in the US with mild to moderate
symptomatic COVID-19 is unknown. A study was conducted to evaluate the efficacy
of ivermectin, 400 μg/kg, daily for 3 days compared with placebo for the
treatment of early mild to moderate COVID-19.
ACTIV-6, an ongoing, decentralized, double-blind,
randomized, placebo-controlled platform trial, was designed to evaluate
repurposed therapies in outpatients with mild to moderate COVID-19. A total of
1591 participants aged 30 years and older with confirmed COVID-19, experiencing
2 or more symptoms of acute infection for 7 days or less, were enrolled from
June 23, 2021, through February 4, 2022, with follow-up data through May 31,
2022, at 93 sites in the US.
Participants were randomized to receive ivermectin, 400
μg/kg (n = 817), daily for 3 days or placebo (n = 774). Time to sustained
recovery, defined as at least 3 consecutive days without symptoms were main outcomes.
There were 7 secondary outcomes, including a composite of hospitalization or
death by day 28.
Results:
- Among 1800 participants who were randomized 1591
completed the trial. The hazard ratio (HR) for improvement in time to recovery
was 1.07 - The median time to recovery was 12 days in the
ivermectin group and 13 days in the placebo group. There were 10
hospitalizations or deaths in the ivermectin group and 9 in the placebo group - The most common serious adverse events were
COVID-19 pneumonia and venous thromboembolism
Among outpatients with mild to moderate COVID-19, treatment
with ivermectin, compared with placebo, did not significantly improve time to
recovery. These findings do not support the use of ivermectin in patients with
mild to moderate COVID-19.
Reference:
Naggie S, Boulware DR, Lindsell CJ, et al. Effect of
Ivermectin vs Placebo on Time to Sustained Recovery in Outpatients With Mild to
Moderate COVID-19: A Randomized Clinical Trial. JAMA. Published online October
21, 2022. doi:10.1001/jama.2022.18590
Keywords:
Naggie S, Boulware DR, Lindsell CJ, Effect, Ivermectin, Placebo,
Time, Sustained, Recovery, Outpatients, Mild, Moderate, COVID-19, Randomized, Clinical
Trial, JAMA