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Most of us are aware of huge number of fake goods that are being produced in the Far East. Handbags, clothes, and electronic goods…the list goes on. Go to any street corner or market in a large city and you will be able to pick up the latest designer bag or sunglasses, which, to the untrained eye, are almost identical to the real thing.

Recently this trend for counterfeit goods has moved into far more dangerous territory- prescription drugs. Buying a fake handbag will, perhaps, cause a loss of profit to the manufacturers of the real things but buying fake drugs could cause real damage to your body.

Every day of the year hundreds of millions of spam emails arrive in the in-boxes of practically every computer around the world advertising unlicensed anti-impotence drugs. These emails contain links to the thousands web of sites selling untested and unlicensed products which are, at best, not as effective as the real thing and at worst contain ingredients which can be dangerous to your health

We have heard some pretty alarming news today that around 13% of European flu viruses this winter are proving resitant to Tamiflu, the drug being stockpiled by governments the world over in case of a flu pandemic.  This study flies in the face of studies done last year which showed little or no resitance to Tamiflu. The worst country affected was Norway where 12 out of 16 viruses of the H1N1 variety had the mutation which made it resistant to Tamiflu.  This extraordinary figure did serve to skew the results for the rest of Europe which would have been 5% without Norway's contribution. Roche, the manufacturer of Tamiflu has stated that it would be unwise to draw any rash conclusions from this study and further work requires to be done.

The good news is that none of the viruses proved resistant to Relenza, which is another medication that we stock.

The UK Government has finally caved in and ordered a further 15 million courses of Tamiflu, the influenza anti-viral medication which would be used in the event of a flu pandemic in an effort to contain the virus.  Without any intervention whatsoever, it is predicted that a flu pandemic could infect up to half of the population.  The new order will mean that the Government has ordered around 30 million courses of Tamiflu which would cover half of the population.  It was originally intended that the medication would only be prescribed to those displaying symptoms but this flew in the face of medical advice which we have stated here before.  In order to contain the virus it will be essential to prescribe the medication to immediate family members of infected patients as this should mean that those who do get infected will have only minor symptoms or no symptoms whatsoever as the virus is unable to replicate itself, thereby reducing the death toll.

Government ministers have also agreed to a spend of £155 million on a vaccine but this can only be developed after we know what the human to human virus looks like.  It will take a few months to develop after the shape of the virus becomes known but it should stop a second wave of infections.

We have had quite a few e-mails about the latest outbreak of bird flu in Suffolk.  Essentially we are advising people not to panic.  There is no real risk to the public at this stage and the Food Standards Agency has insisted that there is no danger of the virus being transferred to humans through the consumption of poultry so long as the birds are cooked properly.  This means that the poultry should be cooked until the juices run clear and make sure there is no red or pink meat.

The World Health Organisation continues to advise governments to stockpile Tamiflu in case of a pandemic and we are prepared to give private prescriptions for Tamiflu as a precaution.

A Swedish scientist has warned of the severe dangers of abusing Tamiflu as the active ingredient survives the sewerage process, which presents the danger that a Tamiflu resistant version of bird flu may develop.  This was the claim earlier today by Jerker Fick of the Umea University.

It was pointed out that Japan (probably the largest consumers of Tamiflu worldwide) was beginning to become resistant to the therapeutic benefits of Tamiflu.  In the flu season of 2004 -2005, 16 million Japanese people caught the flu and 6 million were prescribed Tamiflu!  Studies have confirmed that there appears to be an emerging resistance to Tamiflu.  A study in 2004 showed that 18% of a group of flu infected children had a mutated form of the virus which made them up to 100,000 times more resistant to Tamiflu.

This comes at a time when Roche (the Tamiflu manufacturer) has just announced that it has enough stocks for the upcoming flu season and also that it has received regulatory approval in Europe for smaller dose capsules suitable for paediatrics. The normal dose is 75 mg for an adult but children weighing less than 40 kg require a dosage adjustment and this is normally effected through Tamiflu suspension but this is complicated and it does not have a long shelf life.  The new dosages are in 30 mg and 45 mg.

It has been claimed that many people are dying unnecessarily from the seasonal flu virus as potentially life saving drugs are not freely available.  The claim was made by Graeme Laver, an Australian researcher who said that the anti-viral drug Tamiflu should be made available to anyone who needs it and not just stockpiled in case of emergencies.

At The Online Clinic we are prepared to prescribe Tamiflu or Relenza on the basis of need so long as we believe that it is in the patient’s best interests.

The Department of Health has finally accepted the argument that we have been making for the last year or so that the order that they have placed for a stock pile of 14.6 million doses of Tamiflu will not be sufficient to contain a flu pandemic.  It is our view that the most effective way to treat a flu outbreak is to prescribe on the basis of preventative therapy and the stock that the government has in place would not allow for that given their estimates of the infection rate.

Government figures have suggested that a flu pandemic could infect up to half of the population and kill up to 750,000 people.  A further study has suggested that those figures could be reduced by 40-50 per cent if the Tamiflu antiviral is available to treat everyone who requires it.

Tamiflu is available on prescription through The Online Clinic on the basis of immediate need or as a precautionary measure in advance of need.  Studies have shown that Tamiflu can stop 89 per cent of those exposed to the flu virus of falling ill.

Tests have shown that the Thai-made generic version of the anti-viral drug Oseltamivir, better known as Tamiflu, appears to be safe and effective in the treatment and prevention of avian influenza, according to a top official a Thai state-owned drug firm.

The Thai-produced Oseltamivir, called “A” Flu, which is manufactured by the Government Pharmaceutical Organization (GPO), is due to be submitted to Thailand’s Food and Drug Administration for approval consideration within the coming two months.

According to GPO, the Faculty of Medicine at Siriraj Hospital carried out bio-equivalence studies and clinical trials in 30 patients. The tests showed the Thai-made drug to be bio-equivalent to Tamiflu in terms of absorption, disposition and efficacy.

The Thai government has said it planned to build a stockpile of one million courses of the antiviral drug as a defence against a possible flu pandemic.

The Thai produced generic Tamiflu cannot be exported to any country where Roche has a patent for its original Tamiflu product. Anyone in the UK wishing to purchase Tamiflu should either visit their GP or get a free consultation with The Online Clinic or another reputable online healthcare provider.