Swine Flu Explosion: A Stronger Pill Plan To Be Executed To Curb Swine Flu

Pune: Amantadine, an anti-viral drug which is known to be stronger than oselatamvir, planned to be introduced by Maharashra government for fighting back swine flu. This is because swine flu has claimed over 626 lives this year in Maharashtra. Up till October 5, the state health authorities registered a total number of 5580 cases and a mortality rate of 11%. Amantadine is being introduced by the state to check for swine flu deaths, especially among those who have started taking oseltamivir late and among patients with other such co-morbid situations.

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"We have written to the Union health ministry to approve the use of amantadine and issue necessary guidelines. The drug will either be used independently by replacing oselatamvir (Tamilfu/Fluvir) or in combination with it. Its use will depend on the Centre's advices," says Subhash Salunkhe, adviser to the state government on communicable diseases.

Salunkhe explained the reason behind using amantadine. He said, "It is often seen that people procrastinate when it comes to ensure immediate treatment of influenza-like illness. The delay causes increased viral load in human body and leads to complications."

He added, "For such patients, we need a stronger antiviral such as amantadine. Besides, patients with medical conditions like diabetes, hypertension and asthma also exhibit life-threatening complications when infected with swine flu. We need a stronger antiviral for them as well."

Last week, H1N1 positivity rate touched all-time high of 33%. This means that out of 100 people diagnosed with the same, 33 tested positive for the virus. As compared to last year's rate of 1-3%, this number is significantly higher.

"We received 2,576 throat swab samples from various parts of the state between January and September this year. Of these, 604 tested positive for swine flu, accounting for 23.4% positivity rate. Last year, it hovered between 1% and 3%," an NIV official revealed.

H1N1 activity spiked greatly in the past nine months and indicated great severity of the infection in Maharashtra in this year.

The H1N1 virus activity attained two distinct peaks in the last nine months, indicating its severity in Maharashtra in 2017.