Since the first case of novel corona virus was detected in Wuhan, China in the month of December of 2019, the world is still in search of a solution to arrest its global spread. While mass vaccinations may be an answer in the long term, the costs, availability, logistical challenges associated with it are huge. Closer home, the large population and the geography and penetration of health services would pose further challenges.
India is faced with the second wave of Covid-19 infection with numerous mutants circulating, making the virus many times more infectious. The infectivity is so aggressive that our healthcare infrastructure is near collapse with the stress of testing, turnaround times, oxygen shortages, availability of hospital beds and shortage of drugs has put a huge economic burden on the masses apart from morbidity and mortality.
While lockdown may temporarily flatten the curve, economic necessity forces people to venture out which exposes them to risk of infections.
Unexposed, normal, ambulatory, productive population needs to be prophylactically treated so that they can be protected from infection and if infected can pass through a milder course of infection without the need to be hospitalised; and if hospitalised reduce the risk of mortality. This approach will considerably bring down hospital admissions and the pressure that the healthcare system faces today and may be in future.
Satoshi Omura and William C. Camphell were awarded the Nobel Prize in Medicine in 2015 for the discovery of “Ivermectin” an antiparasitic drug that has shown a 5000 fold decrease in viral/RNA in Lab studies within 48 hours. It has potential to convert RT PCR positive cases to negative quickly, disrupt viral propagation and improve survival rates and significantly decrease mortality.
Ivermectin has a well proven safety profile with more than a trillion doses consumed so far globally. It’s readily available, orally administered with low toxicity and is affordable. Moreover it’s a part of the WHO list of model essential medicines. It has a plethora of evidence from publications for its anthelmintic, antibacterial, anti-cancer and now the antiviral activity. It has been used safely for mass prophylaxis in various countries as an antiparasitic since decades.
A real time meta analysis of 52 studies of Ivermectin for Covid-19 as on April 18, 2021 show a 98% positive effect in different stages of the Covid-19 disease ranging between 43% to 85% improvement in outcomes. It is apparent that Ivermectin based mass preventive treatment is an underutilised and overlooked public health strategy and the time has come to prevent loss of lives and livelihoods through mass prophylaxis/distribution of this near magic bullet in India. The policymakers and the public need to be made aware of this safe and effective option to fight the Covid-19 pandemic.
Effectivity, affordability, easy availability, and safety makes Ivermectin almost a safety shield for mass prophylactic use in India to arrest the pandemic and provide relief to the masses. In this pandemicb out of box solutions are the need of the hour on an urgent basis.
(Ex-Dean GMC)