Tamiflu reduces symptoms by just half a day.

Swine flu: Tamiflu 'reduces flu symptoms by just half a day'

By Kate Devlin, Medical Correspondent
Published: 8:00AM BST 08 Aug 2009




Tamiflu reduces the length of flu symptoms by an average of only half a day, according to a new study.

Patients diagnosed with the swine flu virus are being given the drug, an anti-viral, to reduce the severity of their symptoms and the length of time they feel ill.

But researchers who led a review into tamiflu and a similar medication, relenza, said that the clinical importance of their effect was "debatable".

A total of 36 deaths in Britain have now been linked to the H1N1 virus, although the number of new cases has fallen dramatically in the past week.

There were an estimated 30,000 new cases last week, down from around 110,000 the week before, although expects predict that cases will rise again in the autumn and winter.

In healthy adults, tamiflu reduced the average length of time that symptoms lasted by 0.55 days, while relenza, cut it by an average of 0.57 days.

People at risk of complications, such as those with heart or lung problems, saw slightly more benefit - tamiflu cut the length of time they felt ill by 0.74 days and relenza by 0.98 days.

Although the review was based on seasonal flu, the authors said that the findings could be relevant to the current H1N1 pandemic.

Dr Jane Burch and Prof Lesley Stewart, from the Centre for Reviews and Dissemination at the University of York, who led the review, suggest that other approaches, such as vaccination, might be more effective at combating the disease.

The clinical importance of the effect that Tamiflu and Relenza had on the length that symptoms persisted was "debatable", they added.

"Extension of the vaccination policy might be a more appropriate choice for healthy adults, and an assessment of cost-effectiveness that includes societal costs of extending the UK vaccination policy to all working-age adults seems desirable," they said.

The findings were published in the Lancet Infectious Diseases journal.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/swine-flu/5989184/Swine-flu-Tamiflu-reduces-flu-symptoms-by-just-half-a-day.html

Tamiflu Side Effects

• nausea
• vomiting
• diarrhea
• bronchitis
• stomach pain
• dizziness
• headache
• nosebleed
• eye redness/discomfort
• sleep problems/insomnia
  

More serious side effects have also sometimes been reported. According to the FDA, 'there have been reports (mostly from Japan) since Tamiflu became available of patients causing self-injury or experiencing delirium (confusion, hallucinations, speech problems) while using Tamiflu.' While these 'reports were mostly in children,' it is still not known if they were actually caused by taking Tamiflu. However, anyone using this medicine should be watched closely for signs of confusion or unusual behavior. Call a doctor at once if you or the child using Tamiflu has any of these symptoms.

Stop using Tamiflu and get emergency medical help if you have any of these signs of an allergic reaction: hives; difficulty breathing; swelling of your face, lips, tongue, or throat; a red and blistering or peeling skin rash. Some people using oseltamivir have had rare side effects of sudden confusion, delirium, hallucinations, unusual behavior, or self-injury. These symptoms have occurred most often in children. It is not known whether Tamiflu was the exact cause of these symptoms.