U.S. reports first Tamiflu-resistant A/H1N1 flu virus (Xinhua, edited)

[Giuseppe]

U.S. reports first Tamiflu-resistant A/H1N1 flu virus (Xinhua, edited)

U.S. reports first Tamiflu-resistant A/H1N1 flu virus

www.chinaview.cn 2009-07-08 11:16:09
HOUSTON, July 7 (Xinhua)


A San Francisco girl has alarmed U.S. health officials and experts since she was diagnosed with a Tamiflu - resistant strain, according to local TV reports on Tuesday.


An official from the California state public health department told CBS-5 that the 16-year-old girl developed flu-like symptoms prior to traveling to Hong Kong last month. Upon arrival she was detected a fever and isolated at a Hong Kong hospital as a precaution.

Subsequent testing revealed that the teenager had a Tamiflu - resistant strain of A/H1N1. She's just the third person in the world known to have a strain resistant to Tamiflu, the main weapon against the A/H1N1 flu.

Unlike two previous, unrelated patients with Tamiflu-resistant A/H1N1 flu -- one in Denmark, the other in Japan -- the San Francisco girl had never been treated with Tamiflu.

"This strongly suggests transmission of Tamiflu-resistant virus to her," said Tim Uyeki, an expert from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in Atlanda.

"How that actually happened, there is no way to know."

Though the girl has since recovered, the California health department has been searching the West Coast for others who might be carrying the drug-resistant virus.

So far, no other Tamiflu-resistant A/H1N1 flu bugs have been detected in California or in Hong Kong.

"We do need to really monitor for the potential of a Tamiflu-resistant novel H1N1 strain to spread," Uyeki says.

"If it does, this would be quite a concern because we have limited choices of antiviral medications."

The state and federal health officials and experts are stepping up testing of more cases of A/H1N1 flu virus for Tamiflu - resistance around the country.
-
​

<cite cite="http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2009-07/08/content_11672957.htm">U.S. reports first Tamiflu-resistant A/H1N1 flu virus _English_Xinhua</cite>

 

[gsgs]

Re: U.S. reports first Tamiflu-resistant A/H1N1 flu virus (Xinhua, edited)

> So far, no other Tamiflu-resistant A/H1N1 flu bugs have been
> detected in California or in Hong Kong.


check with the headline of this thread

 

[kiwibird]

Re: U.S. reports first Tamiflu-resistant A/H1N1 flu virus (Xinhua, edited)

nation and world
Swine-flu tests speed up after 3rd drug-resistant case
By Mike Stobbe
The Associated Press
Posted: 07/08/2009 01:00:00 AM MDT

ATLANTA ? U.S. health officials are stepping up testing of swine-flu cases for Tamiflu resistance now that an American has come down with a resistant strain.

A California teen was diagnosed with swine flu last month after arriving in Hong Kong on June 11 and has since recovered.

The 16-year-old is a San Francisco resident and likely was infected in the United States, health officials said Tuesday.

Her illness was mild but noteworthy. She's just the third person in the world to be diagnosed with a strain resistant to Tamiflu, the primary pharmaceutical weapon against the new virus.

The other two patients with resistant cases ? in Denmark and Japan ? had been taking Tamiflu as a preventive measure after coming into contact with someone with swine flu. The California girl had not taken Tamiflu, meaning she apparently was infected by an already-circulating resistant strain before she traveled to Hong Kong.

"It's a little more concerning" than the previous cases, said Dr. Tim Uyeki of the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Hong Kong health officials, known as aggressive in trying to find and isolate swine- flu cases, detected the resistant strain in the girl. Until an effective vaccine is developed, the drugs Tamiflu and Relenza are considered the best defense against the virus.


http://www.denverpost.com/nationworld/ci_12774034

 

[HenryN]

Re: U.S. reports first Tamiflu-resistant A/H1N1 flu virus (Xinhua, edited)

> So far, no other Tamiflu-resistant A/H1N1 flu bugs have been
> detected in California or in Hong Kong.


check with the headline of this thread

Check the meaning of OTHER

 

[Shiloh]

Re: U.S. reports first Tamiflu-resistant A/H1N1 flu virus (Xinhua, edited)

Source: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/07/08/MNG318KL8K.DTL


Resistant case of swine flu found in S.F. teen
Matthew B. Stannard, Chronicle Staff Writer
Wednesday, July 8, 2009

A San Francisco teenager has been diagnosed with a strain of swine flu that is resistant to the common antiviral drug Tamiflu - an important milestone in the pandemic's evolution.

The case suggests swine flu - a form of influenza Type A, subtype H1N1 - is capable of not only developing drug resistance but also spreading between humans in that resistant form, said Dr. Arthur Reingold, professor at UC Berkeley School of Public Health.

California Department of Public Health spokesman Ralph Montano said the teenager had developed some symptoms prior to a trip to Hong Kong but did not seek medical attention before boarding a plane.

"Hong Kong officials screened the teenager on June 11, upon arrival at the Hong Kong International Airport, and they detected a fever," he said. "The teenager was isolated in a Hong Kong hospital as a precaution and was discharged seven days later, which would be June 18."

The World Health Organization identified the teenager's virus as Tamiflu resistant Tuesday, one of three cases the organization has identified in the past two weeks.

It is not surprising that a Tamiflu-resistant form of the virus would develop, Reingold said: If a virus finds itself within a host that is taking an antiviral drug as a preventive measure, that virus may mutate to a form that can survive that drug.

The two other resistant cases - in patients in Japan and in Denmark - were taking Tamiflu prophylactically, said Dr Keiji Fukuda, assistant director-general of the WHO.

But the San Francisco teenager was not, which gives her case added significance, Reingold said, because it suggests she caught the resistant variant from somebody else.

The resistant strains remain treatable with another drug, generically known as Zanamivir, Fukuda said.

E-mail the writer at mstannard@sfchronicle.com.