CLAIM: A recently published study shows that ivermectin is more effective than remdesivir in reducing mortality when treating COVID-19.
AP’S ASSESSMENT: Missing context. The research detailed in the one-page abstract was not from a peer-reviewed study, nor was it a clinical trial. It relied on existing data from patient records and the full manuscript was withdrawn after the authors and reviewers found major flaws, including that the patients given ivermectin were on average younger and less sick than the hospitalized patients administered remdesivir. The researchers and experts told The Associated Press that the findings are no longer relevant.
THE FACTS: Social media users are misinterpreting a research paper abstract, falsely claiming its findings prove that the anti-parasitic drug ivermectin is an effective treatment for COVID-19, and may be more effective than the approved antiviral medicine remdesivir.
Several Twitter accounts that have previously spread COVID-19 misinformation to their large followings shared a link to the abstract, titled: “Treatment with Ivermectin Is Associated with Decreased Mortality in COVID-19 Patients: Analysis of a National Federated Database.”
But claims that suggest the abstract supports using ivermectin for COVID-19 patients fail to acknowledge several key issues..