Take countermeasures to limit risks to deadly new flu

Some of you may be feeling that there's something different about the flu this year. In January, there was an influenza outbreak at a hospital in Machida, Tokyo, where the virus claimed the lives of three elderly patients. It was also found that a strain of influenza resistant to Tamiflu, a drug commonly used to prevent and treat the flu, has been spreading throughout Japan.

The situation should not be taken lightly. However, neither the deaths nor the Tamiflu-resistance were unexpected.

Seasonal influenza, which runs rampant every year, should never be underestimated. It is important that we use the lessons learned from seasonal influenza in preparing for a new type of influenza that may appear in the near future. People die from influenza every year in this country; some years we see few deaths, but estimates put the number of deaths at over 10,000 in one season in a bad year. The elderly and the very young are at the highest risk for death.

The average age of the nearly 450 inpatients at the Machida hospital where the recent outbreak occurred was reportedly 83. Hospitals and social service facilities whose users and occupants are primarily comprised of seniors clearly require extreme vigilance.

Many of the staff and patients at the hospital had reportedly received flu vaccines, so they weren't completely defenseless. But doubts remain as to whether preventative measures such as the wearing of masks and careful hand-washing were being thoroughly implemented. In reviewing their approach to the virus, such institutions also need to assess the value of administering anti-flu prophylaxis, and consider how they will monitor the coming and going of people.

If this had been a new type of flu, the damage would have been more widespread. It is important to keep this in mind when analyzing the case, and make use of any lessons learned in preparation for the possible emergence of a new strain.

What was also predictable to a certain extent was the development of drug-resistance. In a sense, we are fated to see the emergence of pathogens resistant to antiviral and antibiotic drugs. Tamiflu-resistance was frequently detected in Russian Flu A found in Europe last year. This season in Japan, the majority of Russia Flu A has been found to be Tamiflu-resistant. The anti-viral medication Relenza is effective against Russian Flu A at the moment, but there is the risk that resistance to it will evolve.

While many recent cases of the flu have been Tamiflu-resistant, it does not necessarily mean that a new influenza strain will be resistant to the drug as well. New anti-flu drugs are presently undergoing clinical trials; it is important to be armed with a wide range of anti-flu medications.

Still, it is dangerous to rely entirely on anti-flu drugs. Dependence on limited methods of prevention and treatment means that we lose all options once those drugs and measures prove ineffective. Especially when it comes to new types of influenza -- to which humans have not built up immunity -- limiting the risks via a variety of countermeasures is crucial.