Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 21) — The study on the anti-parasitic drug Ivermectin in COVID-19 patients in the country has been stopped, Department of Science and Technology (DOST) Secretary Fortunato de la Peña announced on Friday.
“The DOST, upon the recommendation of the DOH and the DOST-PCHRD Governing Council, has decided to discontinue the study to evaluate the efficacy, safety, and effect on the viral clearance of Ivermectin in COVID-19 patients,” he said in a taped report broadcasted in the agency’s Facebook page.
The decision was reached during the DOST-PCHRD Governing Council meeting on May 11, he added.
De la Peña cited the basis for the agency’s decision, which includes delays on the project such as submission of deliverables, lack of clinical benefits of Ivermectin based on recent studies, and the availability of effective therapeutics for the early phase of COVID-19.
The study on the anti-parasitic drug would supposedly determine its effectivity against COVID-19, and document experiences of over 1,000 asymptomatic patients with mild and non-severe COVID-19 cases.
Recruitment for participants in the clinical trial was supposed to begin in November 2021.
The health department has since stood ground that there is no significant proof that ivermectin can treat COVID-19, or prevent death, even after an international non-profit organization urged for its approval for human use.
