Tamiflu Effective In Treating Flu In Children With Chronic Conditions
Posted on: Monday, 29 June 2009, 10:08 CDT
Children with chronic health conditions benefit from the flu-fighting drug oseltamivir (usually known as Tamiflu) when doctors prescribe it quickly – as soon as they suspect the youngster has influenza – said an expert at Baylor College of Medicine (www.bcm.edu) in a study that appears in the journal Pediatrics.“This study demonstrates that those individuals who have underlying medical conditions and thereby are at greater risk from complications from influenza benefit significantly from the use of Tamiflu early in their disease process,” said Dr. Pedro Piedra, professor of molecular virology and microbiology and pediatrics at BCM, and lead author of the study.
Using health-claims data from six influenza seasons, researchers found that those children and adolescents between the ages of 1 and 17 who were at high risk of influenza complications showed significant reductions in the risks of respiratory illnesses other than pneumonia . It also reduced the risk of otitis media (a middle ear infection) and hospitalization within 14 days of the influenza diagnosis when prescribed Tamiflu. Significant risk reductions were also apparent 30 days after the influenza diagnosis.
Piedra noted the importance of diagnosing the influenza virus using a confirmatory test, which led to a higher likelihood of prescribing Tamiflu.
“If you are not thinking about the flu, you are not thinking about how to treat the flu,” said Piedra.
He also noted the significance this will have with the current H1N1 (swine influenza) pandemic in which antiviral treatment is important.
“If we have a major wave in the fall months and the vaccines are not yet available, antiviral treatments will be the only way we have to either prevent or treat H1N1 (swine influenza),” said Piedra.
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