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They Say: Tamiflu’s Just as Bad as Flu
So much for letting your kids get the swine flu and calling the doc for a Tamiflu prescription. As parents debate whether they’ll allow their children to receive the swine flu vaccine, a new study says the side effects of Tamiflu may not merit its use in children.
Published in the British Journal of Medicine, the new study notes that Tamiflu treatments may lessen the length of time children suffer from flu symptoms but it doesn’t protect them from complications from the flu. Nor does it reduce the contagiousness of the disease.
What’s more, the docs at Oxford say kids are much more likely than adults to experience nausea, vomiting and other side effects. Other studies have added nightmares and insomnia to the cocktail for kids.
It’s important to note that this study looked not at swine flu but at seasonal flu. It is, however, being brought to light as more and more kids are being prescribed the anti-viral for the swine flu. And the Brits have been reporting a lot of side effects from Tamiflu during the swine flu outbreak. Within a five-day window back in April, there were more than four hundred complaints to the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency.
Even as a parent who signs her kid up for the flu shot every year anyway, it’s looking more and more like we’ll be queuing up for the swine flu shot as well. What about you, are you calling off the swine flu party?
Image: Reuters
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[...] You might want to hurry up anyway – or else they might end up on Tamiflu. [...]
They Say: Kids Should Get Swine Flu Vax, Not Most Adults | Strollerderby commented on Aug 21 09 at 8:30 amAdd your take:
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