Ivermectin: South African medics using unproven worm drug to treat Covid-19 - BBC News

The drug Ivermectin, which has been touted by some as an effective coronavirus treatment even though it is clinically unproven, is at the centre of a legal battle in South Africa as some medics want it licensed for human use, as Pumza Fihlani reports.

Many South Africans are desperate for something that could ease the impact of a predicted third wave of coronavirus infections.

With a vaccination programme that has not yet covered all the most vulnerable, there are concerns that the continent's worst-hit country could suffer more as the temperature cools down with the approaching winter.

More than 52,000 people have died with coronavirus and though new infections are now low, they are not disappearing.

It is in this context that Ivermectin - a drug that is used to treat parasitic worms - has gained a lot of attention. Some doctors have been prescribing it to patients with coronavirus, saying that they have seen anecdotal evidence that it can alleviate some of the worst effects of Covid-19.

However, South Africa's medical regulator, the drug's manufacturer and some of the country's most eminent scientists have all warned against using it to treat coronavirus.