Lack of Clinical Research and Evidence Based Medicine during COVID-19 pandemic in Peru

Dear editor, One of the biggest advances facing the COVID-19 pandemic was the development and application of vaccines around the world. Different studies worldwide have found and concluded that the best way to prevent complications and reduce the incidence rates of this disease, is by implementing preventive measures through the application of vaccines. (Thompson et al., 2021). In Perú, the mortality and hospitaliztion rates have decreased since the vaccine application, but the main public health problem emerges when ministers, leaders and medical profesionals that are selected without implementing the proper criteria, do not consider the vaccination as an important way for preventing the disease and prefer the use of medicine that does not have enough evidence. The application and the objective of reaching the minimum coverage of vaccinated population depends on the Ministry of Health and on the intensive work of the health personnel at sites of application, even at places that would be otherwise not used for this purpose. Unfortunately, as previously mentioned, some of these professionals used and prescribed drugs without evidence to treat COVID-19, such as ivermectin, hydroxychloroquine, azithromycin and many others for all patients and without clinical criteria. The investment and expenses that public Peruvian economy used for COVID19 treatment, left without supply of medicines for diseases that should be used as the first line of treatment as hydroxychloroquine for malaria or ivermectin for strongyloidiasis and many other examples. By this, the individual decisions of treating a disease without the correct evidence, generates that people who require this medication are left without availability and increase the symptoms and complications of other disease that are present. Instead, a better strategy that should be done was the implementation of oxygen plants, due is demonstrated that early application of oxygen in appropriate cases is critical improving mortality rate and is necessary for many other respiratory diseases. (COVID-19 Treatment Guidelines Panel., 2022) Why is this important? Because of the number of people that died because of COVID-19, not only due to a complication of the disease itself, but also due to Academic Editor: Felipe Fregni Peer-reviewers: Nicole Sanchez, Leandra Ramin, Niels Pacheco.