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2007-9-3 23:14:55 |
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Egyptian officials say they're on high alert after detecting a strain of the H5N1 bird flu virus that shows increased resistance to the antiviral drug Tamiflu, which is used to fight the disease in humans, Agence France Presse reported. Last week, the World Health Organization discovered that two people in northern Egypt had a mutated strain of the H5N1 virus with "reduced susceptibility" to Tamiflu. Both people, who died in late December, were from the same household, AFP reported. "The health ministry remains in a state of maximum alert and is reviewing its strategy in combating avian flu following the mutation of the H5N1 virus," Health Minister Hatem al-Gabali told a state newspaper Monday. While the mutated H5N1 virus in the two patients is resistant to Tamiflu, it's susceptible to other antiviral drugs. This suggests that health officials could use a cocktail of antiviral drugs to treat patients with the mutated virus, AFP reported. Health experts fear that the H5N1 virus could mutate into a form that's easily transmitted between humans and cause a global pandemic. Last Updated: Jan. 22, 2007 Copyright © 2007 ScoutNews LLC. All rights reserved. |
