http://medicalxpress.com/ en-us Medical Xpress internet news portal provides the latest news on Health and Medicine. Over 40,000 people die each year in the United States from influenza-related diseases. In patients whose immune systems are compromised, antiviral therapy may be life-saving, but it needs to be initiated quickly. It is therefore crucial to diagnose and type the influenza rapidly. Scientists in the Netherlands have designed and evaluated a set of molecular assays that they say are a sensitive and good alternative for conventional diagnostic methods and can produce results in one day without the need for additional equipment. The results are published in The Journal of Molecular Diagnostics. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-04-molecular-tools-influenza.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Wed, 17 Apr 2013 12:49:57 EST news285421790 (HealthDay)—With the height of flu season here, the U.S Food and Drug Administration warns consumers to avoid fraudulent products that claim to prevent, treat or cure the flu. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-02-beware-fake-flu-treatments-fda.html Medications Mon, 04 Feb 2013 14:40:01 EST news279204357 (HealthDay)—Tamiflu (oseltamivir) can now be given to children as young as 2 weeks old under an expanded approval announced Friday by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-12-fda-tamiflu-babies-year.html Medications Sat, 22 Dec 2012 18:40:01 EST news275416514 (Medical Xpress)—Children hospitalized for the flu are much less likely to require breathing support from a mechanical ventilator if they receive antiviral drugs like oseltamivir (Tamiflu) as soon as possible after admission, according to researchers at Boston Children's Hospital. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-11-early-antiviral-medications-lung-failure.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Thu, 08 Nov 2012 06:30:01 EST news271577914 In an open letter to company director, Professor Sir John Bell, she says: "Billions of pounds of public money have been spent on [Tamiflu] and yet the evidence on its effectiveness and safety remains hidden from appropriate and necessary independent scrutiny." http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-10-bmj-editor-urges-roche-fulfil.html Medications Tue, 30 Oct 2012 14:10:02 EST news270824257 For the nearly 62 million Americans infected with influenza each year, oeseltamivir, commonly called Tamiflu, promises to offer relief. New research from the University of Georgia finds the medication may not have all of the benefits flu sufferers and doctors are hoping for. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-10-tamiflu-doesnt-relief.html Medications Fri, 26 Oct 2012 09:40:05 EST news270462175 (Medical Xpress)—In developed countries people over 65 years old are the most likely to die from an influenza outbreak and people in nursing homes, where the virus is difficult to control, are especially vulnerable. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-10-approach-deadly-influenza-outbreaks-nursing.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Thu, 18 Oct 2012 08:40:02 EST news269766661 Scientists have created versions of the H5N1 bird flu that spread easily among mammals through droplets in sneezes and have concluded that the deadly virus could trigger a global pandemic in humans. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-06-pandemic-bird-flu-transmissible-air.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Fri, 22 Jun 2012 14:30:08 EST news259594201 The full clinical study reports of drugs that have been authorized for use in patients should be made publicly available in order to allow independent re-analysis of the benefits and risks of such drugs, according to leading international experts who base their assertions on their experience with Tamiflu (oseltamivir). http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-04-tamiflu-full-trials.html Medications Tue, 10 Apr 2012 17:00:01 EST news253287440 Incomplete availability of data has hampered a thorough assessment of the evidence for using the anti-influenza drug oseltamivir, a Cochrane Review has found. However, after piecing together information from over 16,000 pages of clinical trial data and documents used in the process of licensing oseltamivir (Tamiflu) by national authorities, a team of researchers has raised critical questions about how well the drug works and about its reported safety profile. The new analysis shows inconsistencies with published reports, and describes possible under-reporting of drug-related side-effects in some published trial reports. While the drug did reduce the time to first alleviation of symptoms by an average of 21 hours, it did not reduce the number of people who went on to need hospital treatment. Results from the reanalysis of data also raise questions about how the drug works as an influenza virus inhibitor. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-01-uncertainties-anti-influenza-drug.html Medications Wed, 18 Jan 2012 04:00:03 EST news246081179 The flu season is still young in the United States and the rest of the Northern Hemisphere, but Australia wrapped up its flu season months ago, and public health officials there have some disturbing news to report: The version of so-called swine flu that is resistant to the drug Tamiflu is spreading more easily in the land Down Under. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-12-swine-flu-strain-resistant-tamiflu.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Thu, 29 Dec 2011 10:50:01 EST news244374298 In the new movie "Contagion," fictional health experts scramble to get ahead of a flu-like pandemic as a drug-resistant virus quickly spreads, killing millions of people within days after they contract the illness. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-09-searchers-global-drug-resistant-influenza.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Wed, 14 Sep 2011 14:08:17 EST news235228083 Oseltamivir is the weapon of choice for preventing influenza infection from taking hold, but like any other drug, it also has the potential for adverse effects. Children in particular are susceptible to neurological symptoms, including delirium and an increased tendency for self-injury. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-09-popular-flu-medication-neurologic-side.html Medical research Fri, 09 Sep 2011 09:39:29 EST news234779958