By NewsDesk  @infectiousdiseasenews

The Mississippi state health authorities issued a health alert Friday due to increased Poison Control calls due to ivermectin ingestion and potential toxicity.

Image/Philippines FDA

The Mississippi Poison Control Center has received an increasing number of calls from individuals with potential ivermectin exposure taken to treat or prevent COVID-19 infection- with at least 70% of the recent calls have been related to ingestion of livestock or animal formulations of ivermectin purchased at livestock supply centers.

Officials say 85% of the callers had mild symptoms, but one individual was instructed to seek further
evaluation due to the amount of ivermectin reportedly ingested. No one required hospitalization.

The Mississippi Department of Health says there are approved uses for ivermectin in both people and animals.

Patients should be advised to not take any medications intended to treat animals and should be instructed to only take ivermectin as prescribed by their physician.

Animal drugs are highly concentrated for large animals and can be highly toxic in humans. Some of the symptoms associated with ivermectin toxicity include rash, nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, neurologic disorders, and potentially severe hepatitis requiring hospitalization.