The demand for an antiparasitic for cattle, which is used against COVID-19 although there is no evidence of its effectiveness, has skyrocketed in recent weeks in the United States, as well as
requests for help due to poisoning or overdose
due to its consumption, according to researchers at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
During August, there have been five times more calls than in July for poisonings by the so-called ivermectin in the country, according to a CDC report, which cites data from the American Association of Poison Control Centers.
Those who suffer the worst consequences are sometimes the promoters of the drug themselves, and detractors of the methods that have been proven effective to deal with the virus.
[A Chicago mother loses custody of her 11-year-old son for not being vaccinated against COVID-19]
Caleb Wallace, a Texan activist who opposed the use of masks and vaccines, died last week after catching COVID-19 and
undergoing a treatment based on ivermectin, vitamin C and zinc lozenges
, according to the local newspaper San Angelo. Standard-Times.
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Ivermectin is occasionally prescribed for people in small doses to fight lice, scabies, and other parasites, but
it is most commonly used in animals
.
Its consumption has been informally encouraged in recent months to prevent or treat the coronavirus on social networks with reports with false or unproven information, by non-profit organizations, allies of former President Donald Trump and Fox News personalities.
Wallace, the father of three girls and with a baby on the way, had organized a protest against closures due to the pandemic and the use of masks in 2020 and in April of this year asked the local school district to cancel all prevention measures.
[Florida breaks records for hospitalizations due to COVID-19: they seek space for more deaths]
The promotion has paid off: As of mid-August, more than
88,000 prescriptions
per week
were registered
for the drug — a significant jump when you consider that before the pandemic there were an average of 3,600 orders per week, according to the CDC.
Some pharmacists have even indicated a possible shortage of the drug, according to a report in The New York Times.
"
This is horrible,
" said Walthall, a pharmacist in Kuna, Idaho, a city of about 20,000, surprised at how many people are willing to take an unapproved coronavirus drug.
This summer alone, Walthall filled more than 20 prescriptions for ivermectin, up from two or three he would do in a typical year, and for the past week he has not been able to obtain the drug from his suppliers: he is out of stock.
Ivermectin is an antiparasitic drug developed during the 1970s.Benoit Tessier / Reuters
In Ohio, a suburban Cincinnati woman even got
a court order requiring the hospital to treat her husband
, who is on a ventilator for COVID-19,
with the drug
.
The doctor who prescribed the drug leads an alliance promoting ivermectin and offering information on where to buy it around the world.
The drug is available from livestock supply centers as a highly concentrated liquid or paste, increasing the risk of uncontrolled use.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA), CDC, and National Institutes of Health have warned Americans against using ivermectin to treat COVID-19.
The drug is not only risky due to its lack of efficacy against the coronavirus, experts warn, but also overdoses and intoxications harmful to health can occur.
“
You are not a horse.
You are not a cow.
Seriously, everyone, enough is enough ", says a message published by the FDA against the use of the drug.
"Everybody wants some cure for COVID-19 because it is such a devastating disease," said Shawn Varney, toxicologist and medical director of the South Texas Poison Center, where calls for help from drug poisoning have increased. .
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"I beg people to stop using ivermectin and get vaccinated because it is the best protection we have at this time," asked the doctor. "Everything else is one risk after another," he remarked.
With information from The New York Times, The Enquirer Cincinnati, El País and the San Angelo Standard-Times.
