Tuesday, April 28, 2009

The threat of swine flu has prompted the FDA to approve emergency rules for certain antiviral drugs.

Under the new rules, doctors will be able to use the drugs for a wider range of the population in case mass treatment is needed to deal with swine flu.

The agency originally approved the use of the antiviral drug Tamiflu for the prevention and treatment of influenza in adults and children age 1 and older. Another antiviral drug, Relenza, was originally approved to treat people 7 and older and to help prevent flu in those 5 and older.

Now, the FDA is allowing Tamiflu to be used to treat and prevent flu in children under 1 and to provide doses other than originally approved in children over 1. And both Tamiflu and Relenza may be distributed to larger segments of the population without complying with the approved label requirements.