Japan - Influenza B - Mutated flu strain said contagious
March 15th, 201004/22/2006
By JIN NISHIKAWA, The Asahi Shimbun
A strain of the type B influenza virus resistant to Tamiflu is now believed capable of human-to-human infections, researchers reported Friday.
The mutated strain had previously not been considered contagious, according to the researchers. One researcher said the apparent human-to-human spread could prompt a review of the use of Tamiflu, the government's main weapon in the battle against influenza outbreaks.
The researchers, from the University of Tokyo's Institute of Medical Science, Keiyu Hospital in Kanagawa Prefecture and other institutions, were speaking at a meeting of the Japanese Association for Infectious Diseases held in Tokyo.
It had been widely believed the type B influenza virus that mutated in people who had taken Tamiflu was not contagious. Patients infected with such strains usually recover through normal treatment.
But the group of researchers said Friday that the mutated strain was detected for the first time in six patients who had not taken Tamiflu.
Three of the six most likely contracted the virus outside their homes, while the others probably caught it from family members, the findings showed.
They were among 422 patients infected with the type B influenza virus who received treatment at four medical institutions in Kanagawa Prefecture during 2004 and 2005.
According to Norio Sugaya, a pediatrician at Keiyu Hospital, the likelihood of becoming infected with the Tamiflu-resistant strain is still quite low. He called for increased efforts to detect signs of infection or further spreading. (IHT/Asahi: April 22,2006)
http://www.asahi.com/english/Herald-asahi/TKY200604220122.html
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