Tamiflu proves no defence against swine flu virus

Treating suspected cases of swine flu with tamiflu in patients who are otherwise healthy provides no real benefit, according to researchers at the University of Birmingham. In research published on bmj.com, Professor Nick Freemantle and Melanie Calvert found that oseltamivir, or tamiflu, the drug used to treat the H1N1 stain of the flu virus, does not necessarily prevent complications of the virus in otherwise healthy patients. It may, they conclude, have a very modest effect on reducing symptoms, but that benefit is small and the side effects and safety of the drug should be considered. The team examined the results of observational studies, studies conducted in real world health care settings and data from the pharmaceutical company Roche who manufacture the drug. They found that the effects of using tamiflu to teat influenza in otherwise healthy adults were clinically unimportant. Professor Freemantle said: "The studies focussed on those patients that had no underlying health conditions and who were otherwise healthy and who had received early treatment of antivirals. Our analysis suggests that you have to treat between 100 and 1000 patients in optimum conditions to prevent one person from developing pneumonia." The threat of a widespread global pandemic of the H1N1 strain of influenza began in April 2009.