News & Perspective

(CIDRAP News) – Indonesia reported its 69th H5N1 avian influenza case today, in the 21-year-old sister of an 11-year-old boy who died of the same disease on Sep 18.

The woman from the Tulungagung district of East Java tested positive for H5N1 today, 4 days after she was hospitalized, according to a Bloomberg News report. The World Health Organization (WHO) confirmed her 11-year-old brother's case on Sep 25.

(CIDRAP News) – Leading medical researchers yesterday announced the formation of a consortium to unlock genetic and other data on avian influenza in the hope of improving the understanding of how viruses such as H5N1 spread and evolve.

(CIDRAP News) – Clinicians should use oseltamivir (Tamiflu) as first-line treatment for H5N1 avian influenza, but they should consider giving one of the older antiviral drugs along with it in some circumstances, the World Health Organization (WHO) recommends.

(CIDRAP News) – An analysis of more than 600 H5N1 avian influenza viruses collected from several Asian countries suggests that two older antiviral drugs could be more useful in fighting a flu pandemic triggered by H5N1 than previously believed.