ArticleSocial science & medicine (1982)2022
Pharmaceutical messianism and the COVID-19 pandemic.
Article in Social science & medicine (1982), 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 6 papers.
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Who cites it
6 citing papers in PubMed.
- COVID-19 kit distribution in six Latin American countries: bureaucratic autonomy, populism, and evidence-based policymaking.Health policy and planning · 2026Article
- States, law, and the regulation of controversial health-related claims: consolidating a research agenda between disciplines and contexts.Wellcome open research · 2025Article
- Fear, misinformation, and pharmaceutical messianism in the promotion of compounded bioidentical hormone therapy.Frontiers in reproductive health · 2024Article
- Making sense of a pandemic: reasoning about COVID-19 in the intellectual dark web.Frontiers in sociology · 2024Article
- A Case of Pharmaceutical Messianism Amidst the COVID-19 Pandemic: An Infodemiological Study of Ivermectin in the Philippines.Policy, politics & nursing practice · 2023Article
- COVID-19 incidence, severity, medication use, and vaccination among dentists: survey during the second wave in Brazil.Journal of applied oral science : revista FOB · 2022Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
2 authors.
Funding
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Abstract
As part of their populist performances during disease outbreaks, public officials and politicians tend to offer 'miracle cures' or 'wonder drugs' that can supposedly treat or prevent the disease in question. This article analyzes contemporary instances of what we call 'pharmaceutical messianism' and proposes four characteristics for this phenomenon, namely, that it: (1) emerges during times of extraordinary health crisis; (2) builds on pre-existing knowledge, practices, and sentiments; (3) borrows from medical, often heterodox, authority; and (4) involves accessible, affordable, and/or familiar substances. Demonstrating the analytic value of our framework, we present three case studies, constructed using academic and journalistic sources, during the COVID-19 pandemic: hydroxychloroquine in France, ivermectin in the Philippines, and Covid-Organics in Madagascar. We conclude by identifying some implications of our findings on public health and avenues for future research.
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