WHO investigates Tamiflu resistance, updates antiviral recommendations for H1N1 patients with severely compromised immune systems

Following recent reports of clusters of Tamiflu resistance, the WHO recommended that patients with severely weakened immunesystems who become infected with the H1N1 (swine flu) virus receive additional antiviral treatment as needed throughout the duration of their illness, Agence France-Presse reports.

'Although the WHO said there was no evidence that the two clusters found in Wales and in North Carolina [U.S.] marked a wider public health threat, it reiterated calls for vigilance and modified treatment advice for the frontline flu drug,' the news service writes.

In addition to ramping up antiviral treatment, the agency advised physicians treating patients with suppressed immune systems who are not responding to Tamiflu be given the alternative antiviral, Relenza (12/2).
The WHO also announced an investigation into the Tamiflu-resistant cases of H1N1 in hospitals in Wales and the U.S. showed the virus had not spread among hospital workers and the community, the Canadian Press reports.

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WHO investigates Tamiflu resistance,
updates antiviral recommendations for H1N1 patients with severely compromised immune systems