Evidence map›Paper›PMID 35190831›Full record

SynthesisThe Journal of antimicrobial chemotherapy2022

Ivermectin for the prevention of COVID-19: addressing potential bias and medical fraud.

Andrew Hill, Manya Mirchandani, Leah Ellis, Victoria Pilkington

Open access · hybridAbstract readMeta-Analysis
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Synthesis in The Journal of antimicrobial chemotherapy, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 8 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
8citing papers in PubMed, 2 pooled it
1.7field-weighted citation impact, top 15% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

8 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 17 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

4 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.

Andrew HillDepartment of Pharmacology and Therapeutics, University of Liverpool, Liverpool L7 3NY, UK.
Manya MirchandaniFaculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, UK.
Leah EllisFaculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, UK.
Victoria PilkingtonOxford University Clinical Academic Graduate School, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.
Imperial College London · GBUniversity of Liverpool · GBUniversity of Oxford · GB

Funding

Rainwater Charitable Foundation
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundIvermectin is an antiparasitic drug being investigated in clinical trials for the prevention of COVID-19. However, there are concerns about the quality of some of these trials.

objectivesTo conduct a meta-analysis with randomized controlled trials of ivermectin for the prevention of COVID-19, while controlling for the quality of data. The primary outcome was RT-PCR-confirmed COVID-19 infection. The secondary outcome was rate of symptomatic COVID-19 infection.

methodsWe conducted a subgroup analysis based on the quality of randomized controlled trials evaluating ivermectin for the prevention of COVID-19. Quality was assessed using the Cochrane risk of bias measures (RoB 2) and additional checks on raw data, where possible.

resultsFour studies were included in the meta-analysis. One was rated as being potentially fraudulent, two as having a high risk of bias and one as having some concerns for bias. Ivermectin did not have a significant effect on preventing RT-PCR-confirmed COVID-19 infection. Ivermectin had a significant effect on preventing symptomatic COVID-19 infection in one trial with some concerns of bias, but this result was based on post hoc analysis of a multi-arm study.

conclusionsIn this meta-analysis, the use of ivermectin was not associated with the prevention of RT-PCR-confirmed or symptomatic COVID-19. The currently available randomized trials evaluating ivermectin for the prevention of COVID-19 are insufficient and of poor quality.

Indexed as

COVID-19 Drug TreatmentAntiparasitic AgentsFraudHumansIvermectinRandomized Controlled Trials as TopicTreatment OutcomeAntiparasitic AgentsIvermectin

Identifiers

PMID35190831
PMCPMC9326581
OpenAlexW4212870203

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.