Half of flu patients treated belatedly

[Shiloh]

Source: http://www.koreaherald.co.kr/NEWKHSITE/data/html_dir/2009/09/09/200909090054.asp

Half of flu patients treated belatedly


Nearly half the patients infected with the H1N1 flu virus, a subtype of the influenza A, are administered with Tamiflu belatedly, government data showed yesterday.

According to Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 50.4 percent of the 2,212 patients surveyed last month were found to have been given the antiviral drug more than two days after showing initial symptoms.

It is widely accepted that Tamiflu slows the spread of non-resistant strains of the influenza virus in the body when it is used within 48 hours of the first flu symptoms.

There were only 397 people who received the drug on the first day of the infection and 718 on the second day, the data found.

The nation's first death from the virus, a 56-year-old man, was offered the drug six days after infection. The second fatality, a 63-year-old woman, received the drug after 12 days.

"Most flu patients are visiting hospitals belatedly," said Rep. Shim Jae-chul of the ruling Grand National Party disclosing the government data. "Possible patients need to see doctors more promptly," he added.

Rep. Jeon Hae-sook of the main opposition Democratic Party cautioned against the excessive use of the drug, saying it could be led to the reduction of its effectiveness.

Even though Tamiflu cannot prevent infection like a vaccine, a growing number of people are seeking the drug amid heightened fears.

"According to new government measures allowing doctors to prescribe Tamiflu without confirmation (of the swine flu), it is likely the antiviral drug will be overly used," Rep. Jeon said. "(The government) should take actions to monitor drug use at hospitals."

As of Monday, 6,214 people here have been confirmed to be infected with the virus, according to the government's weekly report on the flu spread.

Four people have died from the disease, although the exact cause of death of a 47-year-old woman on Sept. 2 is still under investigation.

The influenza illness rate, an indicator judging the seriousness of the flu's spread, last week stood at a "moderate" level of 4.33 flu patients per 1,000 outpatients. The figure increased from 2.76 patients a week ago.

(jylee@heraldm.com)

By Lee Ji-yoon



2009.09.09

 

[Treyfish]

Re: Half of flu patients treated belatedly

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Three additional deaths from the H1N1 flu virus were confirmed over the weekend, alerting health officials about the tightened care of elderly people with chronic disease.
The latest fatal cases involved a 73-year-old woman with hypertension, a 67-year-old man with chronic liver disease and a 78-year-old man who was an alcoholic and suffered from liver disease and hypertension.
"The exact cause of death (of the 78-year-old man) is still under investigation," said Jeon Byung-yul, senior official at Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "But we can presume he was infected with the flu virus when his immune system had already been seriously weakened."
<SCRIPT type=text/javascript>google_ad_client = "pub-2831301421308936";/* 250x250,???? */google_ad_slot = "9421316894";google_ad_width = 250;google_ad_height = 250;</SCRIPT><SCRIPT type=text/javascript src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js"></SCRIPT><SCRIPT src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/expansion_embed.js"></SCRIPT><SCRIPT src="http://googleads.g.doubleclick.net/pagead/test_domain.js"></SCRIPT><SCRIPT src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/render_ads.js"></SCRIPT><SCRIPT>google_protectAndRun("render_ads.js::google_render_ad", google_handleError, google_render_ad);</SCRIPT>As of yesterday, the nation's death toll from the disease was seven, with more than 75,000 falling ill.
Six of the dead had been suffering from chronic diseases. It has been found that it took up to seven days to be hospitalized and another 11 days before they were administered with antiviral drugs.
"The biggest problem is patients at higher risk are not treated with antivirals promptly after displaying symptoms," said Oh Myung-don, infectious disease specialist at Seoul National University Hospital.
"Patients need to keep a close eye on possible symptoms of the disease and respond without delay.
"When they are going out, they should be reminded on (sanitary) rules ... Even after the infection, they need to focus on reducing the time until they are treated with medicines," he said.
Health officials predict more deaths will be reported in the coming months with the onset of colder weather.
President Lee Myung-bak yesterday cautioned against the public's overreaction to deaths from the rapidly spreading flu virus in a meeting with his top aides at the presidential office Cheong Wa Dae.
"It would be a problem not to take precautions, but it will also be a very serious problem if excessive precaution creates fear," the president said.
"It is important to take precautionary measures on one hand, but on the other, we must remain calm and carry out our daily activities," Lee said, noting that most people infected with the disease have recovered after being treated properly.
(jylee@heraldm.com)
By Lee Ji-yoon<!-- www.koreaherald.co.kr -->


2009.09.15
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