Local agents issued advice on use of drug

The national committee charged with preparing for a possible influenza pandemic has advised medical agents against the use of drugs called antivirals for prevention purposes.

Antiviral drugs should not be taken before a person has been diagnosed to be suffering from the strain of flu causing the pandemic, the National Influenza Pandemic Standing Committee recommended.

The advice was issued in reaction to a letter sent to doctors by a medical agent who recommended the antiviral Amantadine for a six-week prophylaxis (preventive treatment) course.

The letter, seen by The Times, informed doctors that the drug was available in Malta and was currently in stock.

Questioned about it, the chairman of the national committee, Tanya Melillo, said the committee had subsequently contacted all the local agents of antivirals and informed them it was not recommending the use of the prescription drugs as prophylaxis.

She said this decision was taken after the committee examined a lot of research and looked at what was happening abroad.

The Medicines Authority is also looking into the issue, its chief executive officer Patricia Vella Bonanno confirmed.

Dr Vella Bonanno said the authority was supporting the committee in different ways and was looking into how the advertising of antivirals and other drugs was being tackled.

She stressed that it was illegal to advertise drugs that could only be sold by prescription. Antivirals will have a major role during an influenza pandemic since when taken within 48 hours from the onset of symptoms, they can reduce the severity of symptoms and complications.

However, the drugs could pose a health threat if taken before infection, since the virus causing the pandemic could build resistance to the drugs.

When contacted by The Times, Edward Basile Cherubino, of Cherubino Ltd - which sent the letter to doctors - said the company had decided to redirect its campaign because of concerns that prolonged use of antivirals could lead to the development of resistance to them. He said it was therefore safer to withhold the use of these drugs for the treatment.

Dr Basile Cherubino said it had been suggested to pharmaceutical companies to promote their anti-viral drugs just for the treatment of influenza and no longer for prophylaxis.

While antivirals are not being recommended as prophylaxis, the national committee is not undermining their importance. In fact, Dr Melillo said people could still buy antivirals now for use at a later date, once the pandemic arrived in Malta.

However, the drugs should not be taken on a whim but only after a doctor conducts a test to confirm that a person is suffering from that strain of influenza causing the pandemic.