Can an ivermectin pill keep malaria from being transmitted?

28 SEPTEMBER 2025

In 2023, malaria claimed nearly 6 lakh lives, 95% in the African region.
In India, malaria cases have dropped by over 80% in the last decade.
However, some districts in Odisha, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, and the Northeast continue to struggle with persistent transmission.
This lingering threat has revived attention towards the mass administration of endectocides, systemic insecticides that work from inside the human body.
Of these, ivermectin has reportedly stood out as the most promising.
Since the 1970s, ivermectin has become a cornerstone of global campaigns against river blindness and lymphatic filariasis.
A surprising discovery later expanded its potential: mosquitoes that bit people treated with ivermectin often died or didn’t live long enough to spread malaria.
To test this idea in the real world, scientists launched the BOHEMIA trial in Kenya and Mozambique,
The result: malaria cases dropped by 26% in the ivermectin group, exceeding the WHO’s threshold to be considered a valuable public health tool.
As with all widespread interventions, resistance is a looming concern.
A 2024 review in Parasitology Research highlighted the growing resistance to ivermectin in ectoparasites like ticks, lice, and scabies mites, mostly due to overuse in veterinary medicine.
To stay ahead, researchers are exploring longer-lasting formulations, higher doses, and combining ivermectin with malaria vaccines or genetically modified mosquitoes.