COMPARISON OF THE LEVEL OF IVERMECTIN INDUSTRIALIZED AND MANIPULATED BY ABSORPTION SPECTROPHOTOMETRY

Abstract

Ivermectin is a potent antiparasitic which has activity against a large amount of viroses and was highlighted in 2020 as a drug with potential effectiveness for the treatment of Covid-2019. The work published by Caly (2020) leveraged the off-label use of ivermectin by the population by showing the drug from a test done with cells in vitro infected with the SARS-CoV-2 virus isolated. The present study aimed to quantify the content of ivermectin in manipulated and industrialized drugs, comparing the results with the value indicated on the label. As it does not have a method already pre-established by the Brazilian Pharmacopoeia, the dosage was performed according to the methodology adapted by Costa and Pereira Netto (2019), using the spectrophotometry method in UV / VIS, which is recommended by the Regulatory Agency for the quantification of substances. The results showed that four of the six analyzed were not within the parameters required by the American regulatory agency in relation to the active ingredient content. It is intended to highlight the importance of quality control of medications in addition to warning of possible health risks associated with the administration of medications which indication differs from what appears in the package insert.