Medical Expert Warns Of Overuse Of Antivirals

November 23, 2009 8:05 p.m. EST

Montreal, Quebec (AHN) - Canadian infectious disease physician Dr. Brian Ward warned of overuse of antivirals - including for the Influenza A (H1N1) virus - in ailments that are relatively mild for most people.

According to IMS Health Canada, a prescription monitoring company, as of end of October antiviral prescriptions rose to 151,688 from 73,291 in September.

The World Health Organization is recommending antiviral drugs for people at risk groups like pregnant women, children below two years old and those with underlying conditions. The WHO said these peoples should be treated with antivirals as soon as they acquire flu symptoms, while outside that group antiviral was also recommended if their symptoms worsen.

The WHO recommended administering antiviral within the first 48 hours of infection and suggested that physicians not wait for laboratory confirmation because the virus has the potential of causing severe pneumonia even among healthy young people.

Ward, who is an associate director at the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Center, pointed out antivirals could cause nausea and vomiting and extensive use could lead to the swine flu virus developing resistance to antivirals available.

Ward's team is involved in the major areas of interest in international health, particularly vaccines from concept to community, development of novel treatments and studies of HIV transmission in Africa.