For Kids, Flu Drugs Tamiflu and Relenza May Do More Harm Than Good

As the threat of the H1N1 influenza virus continues, British researchers are reporting that two flu drugs considered the first line of defense in treating the potentially deadly “swine flu” should not be used on children younger than 12.

Using Roche’s Tamilfu or Relenza, a similar drug made by GlaxoSmithKline, to treat younger children infected with the strain of flu appears to have few benefits but carries potentially severe side effects, according to researchers from the University of Oxford.

The researchers analyzed seven clinical studies examining the use of Relenza and Tamiflu in seasonal flu outbreaks for nearly 3,000 children between the ages of one and 12.

The United States and other nations around the world reportedly are stockpiling supplies of the two drugs in anticipation of widespread vaccinations in the fall, when a worsening pandemic of H1N1 is expected. The virus already is blamed for infecting millions and killing thousands of people worldwide.

Rethinking Shots for Children

British health officials have already started giving out doses of Tamiflu to people with the disease and about half of those are children. But the Oxford researchers said while antiviral drugs like Tamiflu and Relenza have been shown to shorten the duration of flu in children by as much as one day, the drugs don’t reduce the likelihood of children also requiring antibiotics to better treat the infection.

Also, Tamiflu may lead to increased vomiting, which can lead to serious dehydration and other complications in young children, as well as elderly and frail patients.

The study findings mean the drugs should not be used to treat relatively mild outbreaks of flu, such as the H1N1, which although widespread, is not proving to be as deadly as previously feared, researchers said.

“The strategy of giving out this treatment in a mild infection is inappropriate,” fellow Oxford researcher Dr. Carl Heneghan told reporters, according to a Reuters Health report.

Companies Defend Their Drugs

Roche, the maker of Tamiflu, defended the drug and said its side effects have been well documented. Tamiflu has been shown to prevent flu infection and reduce both the duration and severity of illness, the company said in a statetment.

“In clinical studies of children taking Tamiflu the main adverse events were nausea 4 percent, abdominal pain 1 percent and vomiting 10 percent,” the company said.

Relenza is most often associated with side effects including headache and nausea, the British company said.

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