Ivermectin the wonder drug.

River blindness, also known as onchocerciasis, is the second leading causeof preventable blindness in the world.(4,5) It is transmitted to humans from black-flies carrying the parasitic worm Onchocerca volvulus and occurs predominantly in Africa.(6)

Ivermectin underwent trials to treat river blindness in 1982 and was approved in 1987. It has since been distributed free of charge through the Mectizan Donation Program to dozens of countries.(1)

Thanks to ivermectin, river blindness has been essentially eliminated in 11 Latin American countries,(4) preventing approximately 600,000 cases of blindness.(7)