First it was Tamiflu that is linked to abnormal behavior in young persons.
Now it is Relenza and Symmetrel.
The Japan health ministry revealed that 16 cases, two of them leading to death, have been linked to the use of two more anti-flu drugs – Zanamivir (sold as Relenza) and Amantadine (sold as Symmetrel).
A Japanese panel looking into the causal relationship between Tamiflu and abnormal behavior found the disturbing incidents in influenza patients taking either Relenza or Symmetrel.
[Source: asahi.com]
Tags: tamiflu, relenza, symmetrel, anti-flu drugs, abnormal behavior

In 2004, a 17-year old high school student dashed out of his home ran onto an expressway where he was hit by a truck and killed.
In 2005, a 14-year old junior high student jumped to his death from an apartment.

Three factors are common between the two teenage deaths: influenza, Tamiflu, Japan.
Tamiflu, the influenza drug, hit the limelight a few months back when reports surfaced of teenagers hurting or killing themselves after taking the drug. It’s particularly rampant in Japan, where 186 suspicious Tamiflu cases have so far been reported by the health ministry. Earlier this year, the Japanese health ministry …read more

Pseudoephedrine is still the most effective over-the-counter medication against the cold or serious sinus congestion. However, sales of pseudoephedrine in the US have been strictly regulated since 2005 to prevent crystal meth makers from using it as an ingredient in the illicit manufacture of methamphetamine.
Well, the UK Telegraph reported that pseudoephedrine and ephedrine are apparently finding their way into illicit drug factories. So, Britain’s Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (similar to US FDA, I pressume) is looking into a “consulation process” to find if medicines containing pseudoephedrine need restriction, such as decreasing the pack size and making …read more

Walmart Supercenter is the one-stop shop for groceries, clothes, remittance money transfers, hair cuts, fast foods.
And now… healthcare clinic.
RediClinic LLC has recently opened nine convenient healthcare clinics in leased space in Richmond, Virginia, to offer in-store consumers easy access to routine healthcare services.
The clinics are staffed by certified nurse practitioners who work with local physicians to diagnose, treat and prescribe medications for common conditions such as earaches, strep throat and upper respiratory infections, in addition to preventive services, screening tests, vaccinations and physical exams.
When I checked the RediClinic website, there are already Walmart clinics in Northwest Arkansas and Tulsa Oklahoma.
I …read more

Champion skater Donna Flowers, has been suffering from chronic fatigue syndrome, so bad that in some days she would spend 14 hours a day in bed. When her doctor detected high levels of Epstein Barr and human herpes virus-6 infections in her systems, he prescribed valganciclovir to bring her viral load down.
To everyone’s surprise, treating the viral infections also dramatically improved her energy levels.

“I was amazed by the results,” says Professor Jose Montoya, who runs the infectious diseases clinic at Stanford. “Donna was sent to me because high levels of another virus (Epstein Barr) had been detected in her system. …read more

A celebration is in order!
Researchers of liver disease are disclosing that Hepatitis C patients can be completely cured of the viral-borne disease (HCV). A study conducted on 997 patients who were able to achieve complte response to treatment showed that only 8 came down with the disease again.

“I tell my patients who achieve a sustained virologic response to go home and get on with their lives. I tell them that there is less than a 0.5 percent chance that the disease will ever return,” said Mark Swain, professor of medicine at the University of Calgary in Canada, who presented results …read more

RSV, for respiratory syncytial virus, is one of the most important pathogens causing pulmonary infections in infants. The virus can cause anything from a mild cold-like infection, to more severe pneumonia, bronchitis and bronchiolitis. It is the most frequent cause of hospitalization of infants in the United States and some two million babies die every year because of severe infections in the lungs caused by RSV, but there is no known effective vaccine or anti-viral therapy specific to this pathogen.
For decades, scientists thought that over-reactive immune system in some infants is associated with severe respiratory infections. That cytotoxic killer T …read more

Nanomaterials. Manmade molecular sized particles just a little smaller than a DNA double helix, that assemble themselves by interacting in similar ways that a hydrogen bond is formed.
These uber-minute particles may be an answer to treating some of the most difficult viral diseases to invade man – HIV/AIDS, hepatitis B, hepatitis C, herpes simplex, influenza and Asian bird flu.
Nanoviricidies Inc, a company that specializes in developing targeted anti-viral therapies, has just signed with Walter Reed Army Institute in creating a drug to treat dengue fever.

Dengue fever is a flu-like illness that causes high fever, rash, severe headache, pain behind …read more

Until doctors can find another drug that can treat his tuberculosis, Robert Daniels is spending the rest of his life in jail-like isolation.
Daniels has what the World Health O. dubbed as XDR-TB, or extremely drug resistant tuberculosis , which is virtually untreatable using current anti-TB drugs. Daniels was considered “uncooperative and a danger to the public” and was ordered locked up because he did not take precautions to avoid infecting others or even to wear a mask in public. Although currently rare in the US, XDR-TB broke out in Africa last year with an alarmingly high mortality rate. XDR-TB is …read more

The H5N1 vaccine developed by Baxter International is working for humans against several strains of the virus, paving the way for the final phase of trial before the drug can be approved.

“What’s important about Phase I/II data is that the results show that Baxter’s vaccine works against many strains of the H5N1 avian flu virus without any additives [adjuvant] to boost effectiveness,” said Baxter spokesman Chris Bona. “Additives can add additional cost and they are believed to cause side effects” such as headache and fever, he added.

Baxter has developed a cell-based technology for producing flu vaccines, allowing for larger quantities …read more