Laura Corin Posted January 15, 2013 Share Posted January 15, 2013 ... would you mind answering my poll please? I'm reading an analysis of the behaviour of drugs companies with regard to trials, and there is mention of the way the Tamiflu studies were presented. Don't worry, this isn't about side effects, just a question of whether the people chosen for the study were representative of the patients who would be given the drug. The book is called Bad Pharma, in case anyone is interested. Thank you Laura Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Splash Posted January 16, 2013 Share Posted January 16, 2013 I was given tamiflu after dd was confirmed with flu, then brothers came down with flu and last the 3yr old. Doctor said mom of four under age of 9 all with flu couldn't afford to be sick. Gave prescription at first signs. 3yr old dd with chronic health conditions received it as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joker Posted January 16, 2013 Share Posted January 16, 2013 I was given it after dr. test confirmed it was type B influenza. It did nothing for me. I was sick longer than older dd who also had confirmed flu but did not take Tamiflu due to not finding out within 48 hours. I started it within 24 hours of symptoms. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amy g. Posted January 16, 2013 Share Posted January 16, 2013 When my daughter tested positive for influenza the doctor wanted the entire family on tamaflu. Maybe because I was pregnant at the time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hilltop Posted January 16, 2013 Share Posted January 16, 2013 My dh was prescribed Tamiflu 2 weeks ago when he went to the doctor with symptoms of type A influenza. He was not tested, and doesn't think the Tamiflu helped reduce the severity/length of his symptoms. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cjzimmer1 Posted January 16, 2013 Share Posted January 16, 2013 Both my husband and one of my daughters had classic flu symptoms. We just let it run it's course. When I came down with similar symptoms 11 days before my due date, I called my doctor to see if I could take elderberry syrup or if there was anything else that might help, he immediately prescribed tamiflu for me. I wasn't crazy about taking it since I generally avoid all meds when I'm pregnant if I can but I wasn't thrilled with being that sick that close to my due date. I will say my symptoms have been signficantly less than the other family members who were sick and didn't take tamiflu. I do believe it has helped as normally it takes me much longer to get rid of things than DH and when I'm pregnant it's even worse. I'm still very tired but at least if I went into labor now I think I could get through it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carrie12345 Posted January 16, 2013 Share Posted January 16, 2013 We had one kid prescribed while waiting on lab results. Two more kids got sick and were prescribed based on the first kid's positive test results. Dh and I then got sick but skipped the drugs for ourselves. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Delighted3 Posted January 16, 2013 Share Posted January 16, 2013 I was allergic and ended up with a very uncomfortable case of the hives. Joy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2boysmom Posted January 16, 2013 Share Posted January 16, 2013 http://www.globalresearch.ca/2005-report-japan-links-tamiflu-to-sudden-deaths-in-children/14755 Just an FYI on Tamiflu. Here in Japan, many fear taking it. I live in Japan and people don't take it so much because of the side effects. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lolly Posted January 16, 2013 Share Posted January 16, 2013 I'm a little confused, when my kids had the flu (many, many years ago), the test for the flu only took a few minutes there in the office. Why would you be having to wait for results before having the med prescribed? My kids results were back during the office visit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted January 16, 2013 Author Share Posted January 16, 2013 Thank you, everyone. I have forwarded the figures to the author. In general I think the book is well-researched and thought-provoking, but the point he made about the Tamiflu trial contained a logical mistake, which was born out by your responses. The book said that the trial subjects were unrepresentative, because 2/3rds had true flu, whereas in the general population of flu-like patients only about 1/3rd have flu. Your results proved (to the extent that such a small sample can prove anything) that testing before prescribing meant that the trial replicated pretty closely what would actually happen when the drug was used on real patients. Thanks again Laura Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amethyst Posted January 16, 2013 Share Posted January 16, 2013 I'm confused. Are you defending the trials done by the drug companies? I am always extremely suspicious of drug company trials done in this country. Other countries have a different set-up for drug trials to at least make an attempt to be unbiased. But in this country, the fact that drug companies do their own testing makes the whole process a dangerous sham. S.P.I.T - small, positive, industry-sponsored trials. They only publish results if they get the results they want. The trial sizes are not large enough to make them valid studies. It's so messed up. I highly recommend the Cochrane Review. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted January 16, 2013 Author Share Posted January 16, 2013 I'm confused. Are you defending the trials done by the drug companies? I am always extremely suspicious of drug company trials done in this country. Other countries have a different set-up for drug trials to at least make an attempt to be unbiased. But in this country, the fact that drug companies do their own testing makes the whole process a dangerous sham. S.P.I.T - small, positive, industry-sponsored trials. They only publish results if they get the results they want. The trial sizes are not large enough to make them valid studies. It's so messed up. I highly recommend the Cochrane Review. The book is actually highly critical of drug trials and I am convinced by much of what it says. That's why I wanted to get straight one small point where I thought he was mistaken. Laura Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Unicorn. Posted January 16, 2013 Share Posted January 16, 2013 I voted other. Dh and I were given Tamiflu after the dc had a positive test for flu. Ds had type A and B w/ in about two weeks of each other. Both were very mild, and only lasted about 3-5 days. That was the year of the panic over type A. One dd got A, and the other got B. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lisbeth Posted January 17, 2013 Share Posted January 17, 2013 Other... We have for preparedness purposes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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