MIRI – The lobby for the use of ivermectin on critically ill Covid-19 patients has intensified, with a lawmaker testifying that he knows of affected people whose condition improved after taking the controversial drug.
Miri MP Dr Michael Teo said these patients in Sarawak not only made a full recovery, but their healing happened rather quickly, too.
“I can say from personal experience, based on my real-life encounters with Covid-19 patients, that ivermectin works,” he said in an interview with The Vibes.
“I cannot reveal the identities of any patients or disclose where they are, as the information is strictly confidential.
“But, I can say for sure that there are real and present cases of Covid-19 patients who took ivermectin and they recovered fully within a few days.”
The Sarawak PKR vice-president said he also knows of cases in Kuala Lumpur where Covid-19 sufferers made a recovery after taking the drug.
He has urged the government to start using ivermectin in its war against the coronavirus.
Ivermectin can be used to treat Covid-19 patients and also prevent infections, he said.
It has also been proven effective in numerous countries not just in Covid-19 prevention, but treatment as well.
Dr Teo said as a medical doctor himself, he dares say ivermectin is safe for use against Covid-19 in humans.
He said Sarawak should liaise with the federal Health Ministry on the use of the drug in the state for those at quarantine centres and hospitals.
“While efforts are being made to hasten the pace of vaccination throughout Sarawak, the infection and fatality rates continue surging every day,” he said, adding that it will take some time for the population to attain herd immunity at the current jab rate.
“That is why for now, ivermectin would be very useful in treating patients and preventing infections.
“We in Sarawak are seeing infections and fatalities not just in urban areas, but in more and more longhouses in rural places.
“There are also increasing cases among construction workers, and at oil palm plantations, logging camps and other project sites in rural districts,” he said, pointing to the emergence of highly dangerous variants like Lambda and Delta.
“We need an immediate remedy, and ivermectin is the answer.”
Dr Teo said the effectiveness of the drug has been documented in other countries with large populations scattered over vast areas, especially India.
“It is a fact that in India, ivermectin has been proven very useful against Covid-19.
“For example, in New Delhi, the death rate dropped from a peak of 400 daily to four in only two months following the widespread use of ivermectin. It was the same in Tamil Nadu and Goa.
“Throughout India, we can see a steep reduction in new cases after ivermectin is used.”
He said his clinic here is willing to play a part in ivermectin trials if Sarawak authorities allow them to be carried out.
Malaysia has logged a total of 1,363,683 Covid-19 cases since the pandemic began, with 21,468 infections recorded yesterday alone.
The country’s death toll from the virus stands at 11,968, with 277 registered yesterday.
Sarawak as of yesterday saw an overall 479 virus deaths and about 85,000 infections.
On July 27, ivermectin was the subject of heated debate in Parliament when PKR’s Sg Buloh MP Sivarasa Rasiah said private doctors should be allowed to prescribe it to coronavirus patients.
However, Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Adham Baba insisted that sufficient clinical data is not yet available to prove its efficacy.
The Health Ministry is conducting ivermectin trials, initiated at end-May, with the help of the Institute for Clinical Research at 12 ministry hospitals. It plans to conclude the trials by end-September.
Sivarasa was backed by the likes of Kota Raja MP Mohamad Sabu, Khalid Abdul Samad (Shah Alam) and Datuk Johari Abdul (Sg Petani).
The Malaysian Society of Infection Control and Infectious Diseases has expressed concern about the anti-parasitic drug being used for the purpose without clinical endorsement.
It issued a statement after a group of six medical and consumers’ organisations urged the government to immediately approve the use of ivermectin on Covid-19 patients in Malaysia.
In an open letter, 10 medical experts said there is nothing to lose in deploying the tried-and-tested medicine, which is being increasingly used in other countries against new coronavirus variants. – The Vibes, August 14, 2021
