Vietnam, Thailand, and Indonesia Selected to Test Adjusted Tamiflu Treatment Protocols for H5N1 Influenza Patients and Other Severe Flu Cases.
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Tamiflu Medication (Image: media.noticias) |
The new treatment protocol is currently being tested as part of the “Tamiflu Resistance Study Planning” organized by the Family Health Organization based in the United States.
During a meeting held on March 16 in Hanoi, attended by scientists from Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam, the United Kingdom, and the United States, experts agreed to establish a clinical research network for influenza in Southeast Asian countries.
Within this network, Vietnam, Thailand, and Indonesia have been selected as testing sites for the adjusted Tamiflu treatment protocol for patients with H5N1 influenza and other severe flu cases.
The trial aims to double the Tamiflu treatment dosage for H5N1 flu patients from 150mg to 300mg per day per person.
This is part of a trial program to adjust flu treatment protocols, initiated by the World Health Organization (WHO), the Family Health Organization, and a university in the United Kingdom.
The decision to double the Tamiflu dosage is based on animal testing results indicating that increased dosage effectively suppresses the influenza virus, while some H5N1 flu patients treated with the standard protocol (150mg per person per day) did not show a reduction in viral load.
Five facilities in Vietnam have been selected to participate in the treatment trials: the Institute of Tropical Medicine, Central Pediatric Hospital (Hanoi), Children’s Hospital I, II, and the Tropical Hospital (Ho Chi Minh City). Based on the trial results, with an estimated funding support of around $2.5 million from WHO, new recommendations on Tamiflu treatment for influenza will be issued to countries.
It is known that Vietnam has recorded four cases of H5N1 patients resistant to Tamiflu to date.
Thu Linh
