The flu season has created shortages of the Tamiflu treatment for children and of the most widely used flu vaccine, as hospitals across the country battle what is shaping up to be one of the worst outbreaks in a decade.
Roche has revealed a shortage of the liquid form of Tamiflu, which is given to children who already have the flu to slow or stop symptoms. A spokeswoman for the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has confirmed supply interruptions in some locations.
Roche said it warned wholesalers and distributors in recent weeks that temporary delays in shipments were imminent. In the meantime, pharmacists can make a substitute by dissolving Tamiflu capsules in a sweet liquid, according to Tara Iannuccillo, spokeswoman for Roche’s Genentech unit, which makes Tamiflu.
The U.S.’s largest flu vaccine provider Sanofi said on Thursday that it has sold out of four of the six different dosages of Fluzone seasonal flu vaccine due to unanticipated late-season demand. The vaccine is made in different sized vials and pre-filled syringes.
‘At this point we are not able to make any more vaccine because we are gearing up for next year’s vaccine,’ said Michael Szumera, a spokesman for Sanofi.
Most of the United States is nearing peak levels of sickness seen during moderately severe flu seasons, according to the Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta.
As of last Friday, the percentage of people seeing health care providers for influenza had increased for the previous four consecutive weeks to 5.6 percent. That compares with 2.2 percent the previous year, when flu was mild.
‘We are hearing of spot shortages. Given the time in our flu season, it isn’t surprising. People who haven’t been vaccinated and want to get the vaccine may have to look in several places for it,’ CDC spokesman Tom Skinner said on Thursday.
It is not unusual to run out mid-season during a moderate to severe season, which is what this year looks like, he said.
Two more of the 20 children to have died have been named as Tahila Johnson, six, and Joshua Polehna, 15
Another two children were named Thursday as six-year-old Tahila Johnson from Dallas and Joshua Polenha, a 15-year-old student at Lake Fenton High School in Michigan.
Johnson was found dead in her bed, the day after her family had taken her to the emergency room with flu-like symptoms, including fever and chills.
Family members are questioning whether she should have been sent home Monday from Dallas Regional Medical Center in Mesquite. According to a police report, her family took her in for treatment and was given a flu diagnosis and a prescription for Zyrtec. The next morning, the girl’s grandmother found her dead.
The Michigan Department of Community Health has said that Polenha had no underlying health condition.
It is definitely not too late to receive the seasonal flu vaccine, said epidemiologist Craig Roberts, a physician assistant at University Health Services at the University of Wisconsin, Madison.
The 42,000-student campus gave 10,000 flu shots before the holiday break in December and has 5,000 more in stock.
‘We’ll be offering walk-in shots’ once the students return around January 22, he said, ‘which we haven’t done in January before. We also sent out a mass e-mail asking students to get the shot at home if they can.’
Carly Christenson, 14, is one of 20 children to have died already this winter from influenza
via Drug ma‘Flu Shots Today’: doctors are advising as many people as possible to get immunized
Danger zones: The most recent Center for Disease Control map shows the states with the highest number of flue cases
As cases continue to surge around the county, some hospitals are taking extreme measures to deal with the influx of sick patients.
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You know, I agree with you. I had a violent reaction years ago to a flu vaccine, and I have not taken one since. The Doctors will tell you that it’s not possible to have a reaction like that, but it is. I have had mild cases since, but prevention is the best medicine. What I find incredible about this is that people are flocking to the medical community for vaccines. And also the fact that the numbers of young people dying from this. We have become a society of running to the Dr. for every little snivel and taking too many antibiotics, etc. And then our immune system is weakened the virus’s and bugs of this century become super bugs unresponsive to normal antibiotics or treatments. Of course virus’s aren’t treatable with antibiotics anyway, but the same principle applies. That’s my 2 cents anyway. Staying healthy with diet, and good hygiene are just about your best defense, even with the young and elderly. This type of treatment is even in the Bible. It speaks volumes about rules that God gave the Israelites on cleanliness, it even talks about ridding your house of mold. Thanks for your comment.
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People who have had the Flu Vaccine still get the Flu. People who put Sun screen lotion on the skin block the pores of their skin from the Sun which gives Vitamin D preserving the Immune system which blocks the Flu Virus. I am 77 years old and I have never had the Flu. The last time I had a cold was at 40 years old when I started riding the bike to work. When we are outside meeting people we should never put our hands to our faces. When we get home we should wash our hands. Flu Vaccines have serious side effects. This is life in the 21st century with the diseases going viral.
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