In order to slow the development of the influenza epidemic which is befalling the United States, American health agencies recommend intensive use of antivirals.
This year, the effectiveness of the influenza vaccine is very low. “Instead of having an efficacy of around 60-65% we end up with a vaccine efficacy between 30 and 40%”, explained on January 16 to Why Doctor Professor Bruno Lina, virologist in Lyon. This figure means that less than half of those vaccinated against the flu are truly immune to the strain that infects the most people this year. This is a real problem, especially at a time when the epidemic is about to affect France: for the 2th week of the month of January, the Sentinels network estimates that 174 cases of influenza are declared per 100,000 inhabitants. The epidemic threshold is set at 179 cases.
The situation is the same in the United States, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) campaign for the wide use of drugs antivirals, especially for the sick and the most vulnerable patients. The CDC has issued several recommendations for doctors and health workers to prescribe antivirals for all patients hospitalized with the flu. “Physicians should be aware that all hospitalized patients and those attending in town at high risk of serious complications should be treated as soon as possible with one of the three available antivirals if influenza is suspected, regardless of the vaccine status of the patient. patient and without waiting for confirmatory tests, “advise the CDC.
And while it is not always easy to quickly determine whether a patient has influenza without the help of a laboratory test … “the person who suddenly suffers from severe pain, high fever and breathing problems – anything like the flu, in fact – we encourage treating it immediately, ”said Dr. David Busch, chief of the infectious disease division in the department of medicine at California Pacific Medical Center .
An antiviral is a molecule that disrupts the replication cycle of one or more viruses. Its use therefore makes it possible to slow down (but rarely to stop) a viral infection. It is with vaccines and prevention, the only known method to fight against infections of viral origin.
The particularity of the H3N2 virus, Switzerland strain, is that it affects the elderly more, warns Professor Bruno Lina. “We run the risk of having an epidemic where the elderly can be quite seriously affected. There is residual vaccine efficacy, but it will be less good than expected, ”said this specialist.
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