KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Kansas Department of Health and Environment is reminding people not to use ivermectin to prevent or treat COVID-19.
KDHE said there's been a rise in calls to poison control centers and visits to emergency rooms due to people using it to treat the virus.
Though ivermectin has been approved in humans to treat skin conditions, head lice and parasitic worms, the Food and Drug Administration has not approved it to treat COVID-19.
“Kansans should avoid taking medications that are intended for animals and should only take ivermectin as prescribed by their physician,” KDHE secretary Dr. Lee Norman said in a press release. “These highly concentrated doses can cause severe illness and even death in humans. The COVID-19 vaccine remains the most effective way to prevent COVID-19.”
The University of Kansas Health System previously reported receiving one to three calls a month to it's poison control hotline about people using ivermectin to treat COVID-19.
Doctors from KU echoed Norman's warning that the drug could be dangerous when not properly used.
