Hong Kong Medic Allays Concerns on Flu-Resistant Drugs
Posted on: Sunday, 15 January 2006, 09:00 CST
Text of report by Radio TV Hong Kong Radio 3 audio website on 15 January
The US government is urging doctors not to prescribe two anti- viral drugs, amantadine and rimantadine, commonly used to fight influenza. It said the flu virus had built up high levels of resistance to the drugs. However, the president of the Hong Kong Medical Association, Dr Choi Kin, has allayed concerns, saying rimantadine is not used in the territory and amantadine is prescribed for diseases other than the flu.
[Choi] Amantadine has been used for a long time. Amantadine is used for purposes other than influenza. It's been used in Parkinson's disease as well. Doctors in Hong Kong have been informed that drug resistance has developed against amantadine, so it is not widely used nowadays for the purpose of treating influenza. So there is not much of a big deal knowing that it is resistant.
Source: BBC Monitoring Asia Pacific
Related Articles
- Hong Kong to Take Additional Measures to Deal With Bird Flu
- Hong Kong Man Faces Online Piracy Charges
- Hong Kong's Leader Resigns After 8 Years
- Hong Kong Seeks Info on Meningitis Deaths
- Hong Kong Calls 'Fart Bomb' Toy Dangerous
- Hong Kong to Gain New 3G Mobile Network
- Hong Kong Attackers May Have Had Wrong Man
- Hong Kong's Celebrity Croc Refuses Food
- Hong Kong Customs Intercepts Canadian Pot
- Hong Kong Woman Sues Over Monkey Mess
 |
 |
User Comments (0)
RSS Feeds