Len Bilén's blog, a blog about faith, politics and the environment.

So, this much ridiculed horse cure is the recommended treatment for all Afghan refugees. Why not allow it as a recommended treatment for COVID?

https://www.cdc.gov/immigrantrefugeehealth/guidelines/overseas-guidelines.html

Vaccination Program for U.S.-bound Refugees:All Middle Eastern, Asian, North African, Latin American, and Caribbean refugees should receive presumptive therapy with:

Albendazole, single dose of 400 mg (200 mg for children 12-23 months) AND Ivermectin, two doses 200 mcg/Kg orally once a day for 2 days before departure to the United States.

All African refugees who did not originate from or reside in countries where Loa loa infection is endemic (Box 1) should receive presumptive therapy with: Albendazole, single dose of 400 mg (200 mg for children 12-23 months) AND Ivermectin, two doses 200 mcg/Kg orally once a day for 2 days AND Praziquantel, 40 mg/kg, which may be divided in two doses before refugees depart for the United States.

All sub-Saharan African refugees who originated from or resided in countries where Loa loa infection is endemic (Box 1) should receive presumptive therapy with: Albendazole, single dose of 400 mg (200 mg for children 12-23 months) AND Praziquantel, 40 mg/kg, which may be divided in two doses before departure to the United States.

Refugees from Loa loa-endemic countries (Box 1) in Africa should not receive presumptive ivermectin for strongyloidiasis prior to departure. Management of Strongyloides should be deferred until arrival in the United States, unless Loa loa is excluded by reviewing a daytime (10 AM to 2 PM) Giemsa-stained blood smear. Deferral of treatment for Strongyloides until after the refugee arrives in the United States is acceptable. Guidance is available for management of Strongyloides following arrival in the United States in the Domestic Intestinal Parasite Screening Guidance.

This was Ivermectin as an effective drug against parasites. How is it stacking up in fighting COVID?

“Several studies reported antiviral effects of ivermectin on RNA viruses such as Zika, dengue, yellow fever, West Nile, Hendra, Newcastle, Venezuelan equine encephalitis, chikungunya, Semliki Forest, Sindbis, Avian influenza A, Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome, Human immunodeficiency virus type 1, and severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2.”

Professor Borody, the discoverer of the bacterial cause of stomach ulcers has this recommendation, saying his research has led him to a triple therapy of Ivermectin, zinc and an antibiotic – which are all TGA and FDA approved – which could be the fastest and safest way to stop the Victorian outbreak within 6-8 weeks. [See Professor Borody’s published research papers ORIC here http://orcid.org/0000-0002-0519-4698]

Professor Borody said, “These 3 medications are already approved. They do not need pre-clinical or clinical trials nor additional TGA approvals unless the aim is to combine in a single capsule, for example. Patient treatment programs have been done in the US and elsewhere which indicate it can work within 4-6 days.”

Professor Borody has reviewed the key antiviral scientific research literature and identified the combination of 3 drugs that are in chemists right now and can be prescribed by doctors immediately. The tablets can be taken at home as a preventive treatment by high risk individuals, or by those who test positive to minimise need for hospitalisation at the higher curative dose.

The therapy comprises:

1. Ivermectin – TGA and FDA approved as an anti-parasitic therapy with an established safety profile since the 1970s. Known as the “Wonder Drug” from Japan.
2. Zinc
3. Doxycycline – TGA and FDA approved tetracycline antibiotic that fights infections, such as acne, urinary tract infections, intestinal infections, respiratory infections, eye infections, gonorrhea, chlamydia, syphilis, periodontitis (gum disease), and others.

Professor Borody says distribution teams could be deployed in Victoria’s hotspots to treat proven infected patients immediately, and people exposed or at risk could be taking the preventative dose.

Since then, Ivermectin was highly successful in combating COVID-19’s Delta variant in Uttar Pradesh, India’s largest state with over 205 million people. It’s most famous shrine is the Taj Mahal.

It is about time for CDC to approve and recommend the proper treatment with Ivermectin, Zinc and Doxycycline for a start, if for nothing else than to save a few hundred thousand lives.