MANILA – The Department of Health (DOH) wants to see more scientific evidence before recommending the use of Ivermectin drug as cure to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).
DOH undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said there is no sound evidence that the anti-parasitic drug can cure patients infected with the virus.
“The DOH is open to any intervention or investigational drug na mapapatunayan na merong ebidensya na ito’y makakaprotekta sa ating populasyon,” Vergeire told GMA 7’s Unang Balita on Wednesday.
“Ang rekomendasyon namin, further studies lang. Kung merong bagong study na dadating na makakapagpakita talaga no’ng ebidensya ay tatanggapin po natin at ia-adopt ng DOH ‘yan for use,” she added.
According to World Health Organization’s representative to the Philippines Dr. Rabindra Abeyasinghe, there is no stringent clinical trial to prove the efficacy of Ivermectin on COVID-19.
“The issue with Ivermectin is that based on the initial study and the currently available data it is not strong enough for us to advocate the use of Ivermectin for treatment or prevention of COVID,” he said.
During a House hearing on the country’s pandemic response, he stressed that there were only “small scale” studies conducted on Ivermectin, with results that were not “statistically significant.”
In its previous statement, the Food and Drug Administration said that Ivermectin veterinary products are not for COVID-19 treatment./PN
