Health director-general Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah said the recommendation for the “off-label” use of Ivermectin in Covid-19 had been controversial since the beginning.
Ivermectin is an anti-parasitic drug mostly used in veterinary medicine, especially in treating worm infestations.
Noor Hisham said many Ivermectin studies had limitations, including small sample size, non-controlled study designs or that the drug was used as an add-on treatment.
He said in March, the Journal of American Medical Association published a randomised controlled trial involving 476 adults with mild Covid-19, who were given a five-day course of Ivermectin.
“The results showed that there was no significant improvement in Covid-19 symptoms. While Ivermectin may have some anti-viral and anti-inflammatory effects, the evidence remains inconclusive.”
Noor Hisham said regulatory bodies, including the US Food and Drug Administration and the European Medicines Agency, had concluded there was insufficient evidence to support the use of Ivermectin as treatment for Covid-19.
“The World Health Organization also issued guidelines against the routine use of Ivermectin in the treatment of Covid-19, except in clinical trial settings,” he said.
Noor Hisham also said the Coalition on Integrity of Vaccines & Drugs Against Covid-19 Malaysia recently cited scientific proof on the utility of Ivermectin, as recommended by some experts from the US-based Front Line Covid-19 Critical Care Alliance.
However, he said the evidence included inferences only from preliminary reports of work without peer review.
Meanwhile, Noor Hisham said the health ministry had initiated a randomised clinical trial to repurpose Ivermectin and evaluate its efficacy and safety in high-risk Covid-19 patients.
He said the trial would enrol 500 Covid-19 patients admitted to 12 government-run hospitals.
“Through this study, we hope to have a correct perspective on the clinical effectiveness of Ivermectin.
“Although Malaysia’s risk for Covid-19 may be heightened at the moment, we must keep in mind that in all circumstances, we need to take all steps necessary to figure out what really works,” he said.
Noor Hisham also said science remained the best weapon against Covid-19, not circumstantial hype.
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