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Armenicum is a drug invented in
Armenia
Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ''Ox ...
in 1998 that its developers claim is an effective treatment for
HIV
The human immunodeficiency viruses (HIV) are two species of ''Lentivirus'' (a subgroup of retrovirus) that infect humans. Over time, they cause acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), a condition in which progressive failure of the immune ...
infection and a number of associated diseases. No rigorously monitored clinical trials of Armenicum have been published, and most HIV experts outside of Armenia do not endorse its use.
Efficacy
In 1999, a
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
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investigation involving interviews with scientists involved in administering the drug, patients and creator
Alexander Ilyin raised serious doubts about the drug's efficacy, concluding that Armenicum might do more harm than good. Dr.
Manfred Dietrich of the
Institute for Tropical Medicine in
Hamburg
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told the BBC "I would not recommend at all to take such a drug." while an American patient said "we’re in a worse state than we were before we went."
Ingredients
The main ingredient of Armenicum is
iodine
Iodine is a chemical element with the symbol I and atomic number 53. The heaviest of the stable halogens, it exists as a semi-lustrous, non-metallic solid at standard conditions that melts to form a deep violet liquid at , and boils to a vi ...
, a general
antiseptic
An antiseptic (from Greek ἀντί ''anti'', "against" and σηπτικός ''sēptikos'', "putrefactive") is an antimicrobial substance or compound that is applied to living tissue/skin to reduce the possibility of infection, sepsis, or putre ...
. According to the manufacturers it also contains
dextrin
Dextrins are a group of low-molecular-weight carbohydrates produced by the hydrolysis of starch and glycogen. Dextrins are mixtures of polymers of D-glucose units linked by α-(1→4) or α-(1→6) glycosidic bonds.
Dextrins can be produced from ...
,
polyvinyl alcohol
Poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVOH, PVA, or PVAl) is a water-soluble synthetic polymer. It has the idealized formula H2CH(OH)sub>''n''. It is used in papermaking, textile warp sizing, as a thickener and emulsion stabilizer in polyvinyl acetate (PVAc) a ...
,
sodium
Sodium is a chemical element with the symbol Na (from Latin ''natrium'') and atomic number 11. It is a soft, silvery-white, highly reactive metal. Sodium is an alkali metal, being in group 1 of the periodic table. Its only stable iso ...
,
potassium
Potassium is the chemical element with the symbol K (from Neo-Latin ''kalium'') and atomic number19. Potassium is a silvery-white metal that is soft enough to be cut with a knife with little force. Potassium metal reacts rapidly with atmosphe ...
and
lithium
Lithium (from el, λίθος, lithos, lit=stone) is a chemical element with the symbol Li and atomic number 3. It is a soft, silvery-white alkali metal. Under standard conditions, it is the least dense metal and the least dense solid el ...
cations and
chloride
The chloride ion is the anion (negatively charged ion) Cl−. It is formed when the element chlorine (a halogen) gains an electron or when a compound such as hydrogen chloride is dissolved in water or other polar solvents. Chloride salts ...
anions. It is described as a "blue-violet liquid with specific odor, packed in orange glass bottles per 20ml and corked tightly by a rubber plug clutched by aluminum caps."
Clinical studies
Clinical studies of the drug (1998–2000) were carried out in the Intensive Care Unit of the 1st Infectious Clinical Hospital in Yerevan: head of department, Ph.D. Petr Artishchev (1994–2000). Phase 2A of clinical trials revealed a good tolerance of the drug, a certain direction of adverse events, which constituted an insignificant percentage of the number of observations. Laboratory diagnostics of the tests under study was carried out by the "Prom-Test" Laboratory as a Central laboratory. The head: Arthur Melkonyan. The scientific supervisor from the beginning of the study and until the end of his life was the head of Infectious Diseases department of Yerevan State Medical University, Ph.D. Levon Mkhitaryan (d. 2009). General management was entrusted to Prof. Emil Gabrielyan (d. 2010) – Director of the Republican Pharmacological Agency, who was a Minister of Health of the Armenian SSR in the past.
Company
Later, the formed CJSC “Armenicum” acquired the buildings and the land of the 1st Infectious Clinical Hospital (2000). The reconstructed building was renamed into the “Armenicum Medical Center”, which to this day is engaged in the treatment of HIV infection and works on government orders.
Kolesnikov controversy
On 8 September 2000, Nikolai Kolesnikov, who had received treatment for AIDS in "Armenicum" center in Armenia was reported dead in one of
Kaliningrad
Kaliningrad ( ; rus, Калининград, p=kəlʲɪnʲɪnˈɡrat, links=y), until 1946 known as Königsberg (; rus, Кёнигсберг, Kyonigsberg, ˈkʲɵnʲɪɡzbɛrk; rus, Короле́вец, Korolevets), is the largest city and ...
hospitals. According to his doctors, Armenicum turned out to be a simple immunity modular, without any effect on the virus which continues to damage the cells in the human body.
In March 2005, Kolesnikov was reported to have frozen to death in his native Kaliningrad. There have been several other reports on his death over the years.
Nikolay Kolesnikov Dead Having Reportedly Frozen To Death
Public Radio of Armenia, March 19, 2005
References
Sources
Armenicum website
Scepticism over Aids 'cure'
Access Armenicum
{{Yerevan landmarks
HIV/AIDS
Alternative medical treatments
Health in Armenia