On June 5, Dr Noor Hisham announced the MoH had begun Ivermectin trials for high-risk Covid-19 patients. The trial was approved by Medical Research and Ethics Committee (MREC), MoH, on May 25.
He stated the study compared Ivermectin treatment (specific dose with specific duration) with the standard of care alone. Five hundred subjects from high-risk groups aged 50 years and above admitted to MoH hospitals with mild/moderate Covid-19 symptoms (Stage 2-3) will be enrolled in the study. The study aims to determine the efficacy of Ivermectin in preventing the progression of Covid-19 to severe disease (Stage 4-5) and in terms of mortality outcomes.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) Covid-19 Solidarity Trial for Covid-19 Treatments (SOLIDARITY), which included Malaysia, found insufficient evidence for remdesivir, hydroxychloroquine, interferon and lopinavir against the virus.
Dr Noor Hisham shared the Malaysian Consensus Management Guidelines for Covid-19 maintains Favipiravir as the only antiviral therapy for the management of Covid-19 cases. This recommendation, however, may change as more evidence becomes available.
The First-Patient-In (FPI) for the Ivermectin trial was on May 31 2021. The trial is expected to be completed by September. — The Health
