Why Take Ivermectin?

Ivermectin was originally used in animals as an antiparasitic before it was used in humans [1, 2]. Read more about ivermectin's past here. Ivermectin might be prescribed for animals to treat:

• Internal parasitic infections

  • This is when parasites like nematodes and arthropods (small worms and bugs) get into the host's organs or blood [3, 4].

• External parasitic infections

  • This is when parasites like fleas or ticks lives on the outside of the host animal's body [3, 4, 5].

Larger animals that weigh more will be given a higher dosage of ivermectin [3]. This means that ivermectin bought from a vet might be stronger than ivermectin prescribed for humans; if someone takes this strong ivermectin intended for larger animals, they could overdose [6, 7].

Read more about the symptoms of overdose and how it might be prevented.

Ivermectin can be prescribed to humans for lots of different reasons. In particular, it's often used by the World Health Organisation to control parasite outbreaks [2, 8].

Ivermectin might be prescribed for humans to treat:

• River Blindness

  • Also known as onchocerciasis, this disease is caused by a small worm that can lead to blindness unless promptly treated [9, 10, 11].

• Lymphatic filariasis

  • This is a contagious disease, in which parasites are spread by mosquitoes; the parasites then cause painful swelling of the limbs [9, 12, 13].

• Strongyloidiasis

  • A parasitic infection in which up to 50% of people can have no symptoms at all; those who do have symptoms may suffer from trouble breathing or gut issues like diarrhoea [9, 14].

• Rosacea

  • A non-contagious skin condition that causes a flushed or red face; this may be partially caused by small mites on the face [9, 15, 16].

• Scabies (Off label in some countries)

  • This is an itchy skin condition caused by a small parasite laying eggs in the skin; it can be highly contagious [9, 10, 17].