Panaji, May 11: In order to bring down the mortality rate among COVID-19 patients, all people above 18 years in Goa will be given Ivermectin drug. Ivermectin will be given irrespective of their coronavirus status. The announcement was made by Goa Health Minister Vishwajit Rane on Monday. Notably, the drug is used in the treatment of various types of parasite infestation. I have given instructions for immediate implementation of prophylaxis (action taken to prevent disease) treatment," Rane said.

"The Ivermectin 12 mg tablet will be made available in all the district, sub-district, PHCs, CHCs, sub-health centres, rural dispensaries for people to collect and start treatment immediately, irrespective of any symptoms or anything," The Goa Health Minister added. The treatment would not prevent COVID-19 infection, but it can help reduce the severity. Regular Ivermectin Use May Cut Risk of Contracting COVID-19, Claims Study.

Tweets by Vishwajeet Rane: 

Goa on Monday recorded 2,804 new cases of coronavirus, taking its tally to 1,21,650, while 50 more fatalities pushed the toll to 1,729, a health official said. Last month, the Union Health Ministry also indicated the use of Ivermectin drug. At present, Remdesivir is the only drug used for the treatment of COVID-19. Regular Ivermectin Use May Cut Risk of Contracting COVID-19, Claims Study.

Meanwhile, the World Health Organisation (WHO) on Tuesday asked recommended not to use 'ivermectin' for the treatment of COVID-19. "Safety and efficacy are important when using any drug for a new indication. WHO recommends against the use of 'ivermectin' for COVID-19 except within clinical trials," tweeted Soumya Swaminathan, WHO's chief scientist. German healthcare and life sciences company Merck also issued a similar warning. Earlier also, the WHO had warned against the use of the drug.

Tweet by Soumya Swaminathan:

However, some studies suggested the opposite. The research, published in the May-June issue of the American Journal of Therapeutics, is the most comprehensive review of the available data on Ivermectin taken from clinical, in vitro, animal, and real-world studies, its authors said. "We conducted the most comprehensive review of the available data on ivermectin," said Pierre Kory, president and chief medical officer of the Front Line Covid-19 Critical Care Alliance (FLCCC), a group of medical and scientific experts, which led the study.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on May 11, 2021 01:00 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).