INTOXICATION BY USE OF IVERMECTIN: AN INTEGRATIVE REVIEW

Ivermectin was the medicine most used for both prophylaxis and treatment during the COVID-19 pandemic period in many countries. Its use was evaluated in patients simultaneously with a race to produce vaccines and reduce mortality from Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). As it is a prescription-free medicine in Brazil, and given the fear of contagion among a large part of the population, its use as a prophylactic alternative against SARS-CoV-2 was widely observed. The objective of this review is to survey scientific studies around the world that report the toxicity of ivermectin and its risks to the various systems of the human body. A search was carried out in the PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus and Embase databases using the keywords: “ivermectin” and “intoxication”. After analyzing the search based on the strategy we outlined, we identified eight studies that addressed ivermectin toxicity. The data obtained from the articles reflect the toxic effects caused by the off-label use of ivermectin, and reports of its toxicity were more serious following the pandemic period than those previously reported. One hypothesis to explain this would be the indiscriminate use of the medication during this period.