Taking flu drugs before illness may create stronger virus
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Students who take flu medicine as a preventative measure while preparing for entrance exams may be doing more harm than good, according to experts.
The Japanese Association for Infectious Diseases has warned of the risks associated with the growing trend, saying such students may become ill from side effects and resistant viruses may increase in the body, making current medicines on the market ineffective.
Acquiring flu drugs through being prescribed by a physician as a means of prevention is not covered by public health care, with patients bearing the full expense.
However, that does not stop people like a 53-year-old woman in Ichikawa, Chiba Prefecture, from scrambling to access them.
When her 21-year-old daughter caught the flu, she became worried about her younger daughter, a 17-year-old high school student, who was about to take the National Center Test for University Admissions. To avoid having her younger daughter catch the virus, the mother got a prescription of the flu drug Inavir, separately from the oldest daughter. As the younger daughter was healthy, she did not need to take the medicine.
A clinic in Ebina, Kanagawa Prefecture, has been inundated with inquiries about flu drugs this flu season. The clinic prescribes drugs only after a patient understands that the drug is not covered by national health insurance and signs a consent form. The patient is then charged about 6,000 ($54) to 8,000 yen, including a physician’s fee.
A doctor at the clinic said, “We only prescribe it to people with compelling reasons, such as a student taking entrance exams. We provide the patient with guidance regarding how to finish the pre-determined dose in order to stave off resistant viruses.”
However, the association recommends that only geriatric facilities and hospitals administer such drugs prophylactically to elderly residents, patients, and employees in order to prevent influenza from spreading among those who are at high risk of aggravation and death.
Only Tamiflu, taken orally, and Relenza and Inavir, both inhalation drugs, mention prophylactic administration in their drug package inserts. The target patients of these drugs are limited to those who live in the same house as an influenza patient. Additionally, they have to be 65 or older or diagnosed with a respiratory disease, cardiac disease, or diabetes.
In the case of experiencing side effects by taking a drug not covered by insurance, a patient will not be eligible for the Relief System for Sufferers from Adverse Drug Reactions.
Use of Xofluza, a flu drug released in March 2018, as a preventive measure is not permitted, though some clinics prescribe it at a doctor’s discretion. Since the start of clinical trial phases, it has been known that Xofluza likely increases resistant viruses.
Norio Sugaya from Keiyu Hospital in Yokohama, who is a member of the Japanese Association for Infectious Diseases, said: “If resistant viruses spread due to abuse of such drugs, treatment of influenza with antiviral drugs will become ineffective. It will have profound, harmful social effects.”
Sugaya added: “If the trend of taking anti-flu drugs as a measure of prevention grows to a scale of 1,000 people, some will end up becoming ill from side effects. The basics of preventing influenza are getting vaccinated, washing your hands and getting plenty of rest.”
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