Social Media Post on Use of Ivermectin for Refugees Lacks Context

SciCheck Digest

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends the use of ivermectin as a treatment for arriving refugees to treat parasitic infections. But a social media post by Dr. Simone Gold, a proponent of ivermectin as a treatment for COVID-19, references the CDC guidance without accurately explaining the reason why refugees are given the drug. The CDC has warned against using ivermectin to prevent or treat COVID-19.

There are no cures for COVID-19. So far, only a few evidence-based treatments are available.

One is the antiviral drug remdesivir, which received approval from the Food and Drug Administration in October for COVID-19 patients requiring hospitalization. The FDA based its approval on randomized, controlled clinical trials that found faster recovery times and statistically significant odds of improving conditions among patients with mild to severe COVID-19 who received the drug, compared with those who got a placebo plus standard care.

That’s the only FDA-approved treatment, but the agency has granted emergency use authorization to others. For instance, based on the findings of randomized controlled trials, it has authorized the use of several monoclonal antibodies that target SARS-CoV-2 for patients with mild to moderate disease who are at high risk for developing severe COVID-19. These drugs are synthetic antibodies that are designed to prevent the virus from entering cells, although some may not be effective against all variants of the coronavirus.

Another key drug in the limited arsenal is the steroid dexamethasone, which was found in a large randomized controlled trial in the U.K. to provide a mortality benefit in hospitalized COVID-19 patients who were ventilated or receiving supplemental oxygen. The finding was announced in June 2020. Dexamethasone, however, did not help patients who weren’t receiving respiratory support, and may have harmed them.

The FDA has also issued EUAs for two immune modulating drugs, tocilizumab and baricitinib, for use in certain patients who are hospitalized, in combination with other drugs. Both drugs are used to treat rheumatoid arthritis and are thought to help by tamping down an overactive immune system later in the disease progression.

Baricitinib was authorized in combination with remdesivir for hospitalized patients who require ventilation or supplemental oxygen; that decision was based on a randomized, controlled clinical trial that found faster recovery times and better odds of improvement with the drug combination. Tocilizumab was authorized for patients taking systemic corticosteroids, such as dexamethasone, who need supplemental oxygen or ventilation.

Convalescent plasma, or the part of the blood that contains antibodies from people who have recovered from COVID-19, has also been studied as a potential treatment. In February 2021, the FDA modified its EUA to include only plasma with a high concentration of antibodies “for the treatment of hospitalized patients early in the disease course,” following studies that found no benefit with lower antibody amounts. In a March 9 letter, the FDA noted that “the clinical evidence supporting this EUA remains limited” and encouraged health care providers to enroll patients in ongoing clinical trials. The NIH’s COVID-19 treatment guidelines do not currently recommend convalescent plasma for any patient group.

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Ivermectin, an antiparasitic medication for humans and animals, has been a source of controversy in recent months as unfounded claims that the drug is an effective treatment for COVID-19 have gained traction online.

Despite the increasing circulation of these claims, ivermectin is not an authorized treatment for COVID-19. Studies of the drug’s efficacy and safety are ongoing. But, as of now, its use in treating COVID-19 outside of clinical trials is not recommended by the National Institutes of Health, the Food and Drug Administration or the World Health Organization. (For more, see SciCheck’s “Ongoing Clinical Trials Will Decide Whether (or Not) Ivermectin Is Safe, Effective for COVID-19.”)

A recent Facebook post highlighted a tweet by Dr. Simone Gold, who has advocated the use of ivermectin for the treatment of COVID-19, saying that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention “officially recommends administering ivermectin as presumptive therapy (giving medication without a diagnosis) to refugees.”

Gold continues: “The FDA approved it for human use in February 1996. The media’s claim that ivermectin is only a de-wormer for animals is a flat-out lie.”

But by failing to indicate why ivermectin is a recommended treatment for refugees, Gold may leave the false impression that the drug is being used to treat COVID-19.

In fact, some of the comments on the post indicate that readers did get that false impression. For instance, one person commented: “Why does the CDC care more about refugees than the American people?”

The CDC actually recommends ivermectin as a presumptive treatment for incoming refugees to fight parasitic infections, not COVID-19. The use of ivermectin is aimed at treating a disease called strongyloidiasis, caused by a common parasite, a roundworm, in refugees from Asia, the Middle East, Latin America and parts of Africa.

Ivermectin is approved for human use to treat some conditions caused by parasites, such as strongyloidiasis and onchocerciasis, which is otherwise known as “river blindness.”

Ivermectin is not recommended by the CDC as a treatment for COVID-19. In fact, the CDC issued a health advisory on Aug. 26 warning against misusing ivermectin to either prevent or treat COVID-19.

“Adverse effects associated with ivermectin misuse and overdose are increasing, as shown by a rise in calls to poison control centers reporting overdoses and more people experiencing adverse effects,” the CDC advisory said.

Gold, who founded the organization America’s Frontline Doctors, has previously made misleading claims about COVID-19 treatments. As we’ve reported, Gold has touted hydroxychloroquine as a “cure” for COVID-19 despite the fact that randomized controlled trials have found the drug isn’t beneficial in treating hospitalized patients.

America’s Frontline Doctors has a page dedicated to promoting unapproved and unproven treatment options for COVID-19. (The antiviral drug remdesivir is the only treatment for COVID-19 approved by the FDA, although the agency has granted emergency use authorization to others.)

Editor’s note: SciCheck’s COVID-19/Vaccination Project is made possible by a grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The foundation has no control over FactCheck.org’s editorial decisions, and the views expressed in our articles do not necessarily reflect the views of the foundation. The goal of the project is to increase exposure to accurate information about COVID-19 and vaccines, while decreasing the impact of misinformation.