STUDY OF POSSIBLE SYSTEMIC EFFECTS CAUSED BY HIGH DOSES OF IVERMECTIN IN AN ANIMAL MODEL OF WISTAR RATS

Abstract

Introduction: Self-medication and inappropriate prescribing are serious public health problems, creating health risks. Due to the coronavirus pandemic and COVID-19, there was an urgency to obtain therapeutics, although much speculation drove deleterious habits regarding the use of medications. Objective: To evaluate the possible systemic effects caused by different doses of Ivermectin. Methods: Using an animal model of Wistar rats, the animals were divided into 4 groups of 10 members, being treated orally with: i. saline (control - placebo); ii. Ivermectin suspension 300 µg/Kg/day; iii. Ivermectin suspension 500 µg/Kg/day; and iv. Ivermectin suspension 1000 µg/Kg/day. After the 6-week experiment, the rats were euthanized and serum samples collected, with liver (ALT and AST) and kidney (creatinine and urea) function tests performed, as well as histological evaluation of the liver, kidneys, heart, and salivary glands. Results: Treatments with Ivermectin doses up to 1000 µg/kg/day did not affect ALT and AST, creatinine and urea levels compared to the control-placebo group (p > 0.05), and such doses also did not cause morphological damage to the kidneys, heart and salivary glands. Only the dose of 1000 µg/kg/day promoted slight changes in liver morphology. Conclusions: Ivermectin doses up to 1000 µg/kg/day did not promote functional changes in the organs evaluated, except for the dose of 1000 µg/kg/day in the liver. Due to the limitations of the animal model adopted, further studies in different experimental models should be conducted to corroborate these preliminary findings, in order to clarify the possible safety of Ivermectin.