Could intravenous antivirals be a last-ditch treatment for swine flu?

An unlicensed intravenous form of the antiviral drug Relenza saved the life of a woman with a severe illness resulting from infection by the pandemic H1N1 influenza virus, British doctors reported today in the journal Lancet. Dr. Michael Kidd and Dr. Mervyn Singer of the University College London Hospitals were treating the virus, commonly known as swine flu, in a 22-year-old woman who had contracted it after undergoing chemotherapy for Hodgkin's disease.

The woman had increasing shortness of breath, build-up of fluid in both lungs and was progressively deteriorating. Physicians had given her Tamiflu and Relenza, which is normally given in an inhalable form. Neither was effective, and on the 16th day of her stay in the intensive care unit, the doctors decided to try an experimental form of Relenza that is given intravenously. Permission for the experiment was given by the hospital and the woman's relatives, and the drug was supplied by the manufacturer, GlaxoSmithKline. Her condition improved within 48 hours and she was discharged from the ICU on the 24th day. The doctors speculated that neither the inhaled Relenza nor the oral Tamiflu were reaching the infection deep in her lungs.

Both GlaxoSmithKline and Roche, which manufactures Tamiflu, have been testing intravenous formulations of the drugs with some success. Additionally, BioCryst Pharmaceuticals of Birmingham, Ala, has been testing a third antiviral drug called peramivir, primarily in Japan. The President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology, in a report presented to the White House last week, called on the Food and Drug Administration to accelerate the approval process for the drugs, and many doctors have echoed that call, terming the intravenous drugs a valuable new addition to therapy of influenza infections.

-- Thomas H. Maugh II

Comments

[colon health]

This is great news for health enthusiasts like me. Can I ask you guys the permission to post this on my health site at bodilynature.com? If not, I could just link to this page.

Thanks for the heads up.

[FortheloveofHope]

very intrigging this means swine flu and regular flu will be easily treated how bout a big hallelujah.

[John Harris]

The FDA and GSK have reached an impass with regards iv zanamivir (iv Relenza). The patent life remaining on zanamivir, which had been all but abandoned because Tamiflu torpedoed sales and research funds to complete development of iv zanamivir trials started in the 90's, makes research now unprofitable.

All the eggs and the huge profits were put in the Tamiflu basket for years but recently the H274Y hole in the basket ( ignored by Roche and the FDA) has allowed Tamiflu resistant seasonal flu, Tamiflu resistant bird flu, and Tamiflu resistant swine flu. GSK feels no compulsion to fund the iv zanamivir research which will become patent free in a few years having been cheated of any reward for the pioneering research into Relenza that was used by Gilead to develop Tamiflu. Relenza had/has no similar resistance flaws.

The iv zanamivir recently used to save lives in emergency circumstances will only be available for compassionate use from GSK, and once the small amount specially made for the abandoned trial tests is used up, you can thank Roche for such a successful Tamiflu marketing campaign, world health organisations too short sighted to contemplate "what if Tamiflu fails" senarios, and GSK's sour grapes.