Tamiflu Warning to Pregnant Women

[JellyBean]

This unfortunate story was in yesterday's paper. I am not posting this to scaremonger, but if I was a pregnant lady presented with this drug, I would want to know of any reported (or not reported) adverse reactions, and the risk it may pose to my baby.

A pregnant lady in WA went in to see her OB, presenting with flu-like symptoms. She was prescribed tamiflu as a precaution, and sent home. A couple of days later it was determined through a blood test that she did not have swine flu - just a regular flu/cold, but since taking the tamiflu she had broken out in a rash and was experiencing negative side effects. When she went back to her OB, he regretably had to inform her that her baby's heart had stopped beating and that she would require an emergency c-section.
The woman delivered her baby but continued to feel unpleasant side-effects from the drug. At home a week or so later in bed she complained to her husband that she could not feel her legs, and fell asleep - only to not wake up again.

Of course nothing is conclusive, but I think this story deserves to be out there so that women presented with the option of taking this relatively new drug whilst pregnant will be prompted to thoroughly investigate.

Prayers and blessings to the family for their losses.

[AliB]

Jellybean I have searched for any such news article and cannot find one.

I note that you have often posted with your concerns about vaccination, so to avoid scaremongering as you say - if this is genuine could you please urgently furnish us with the link.

[mzcatieboo]

this happens to be very true im afraid. a friend of mine just lost her baby boy @ 33weeks. she gave birth to him today. and had the tamiflu 4 days ago. its so sad, they doing tests to find out if it was the tamiflu but the dr seems pretty certain it was as she had a dream pregnancy.

EDIT:

i cant find the link on the net but i have read it in the paper

[ttcanxiety]

It could have been an allergic reaction? and her body fighting the allergy taking precious resources away from bubs?

[MummaSue]

It does sound like an allergic reaction and I wonder if this would still have happened to her pregnant or not - more than likely.

People have awful reactions to the most inconspicuous drugs. It's what makes our bodies all very different. One person won't have the same reaction as the next person. Tamiflu has been taken by other pregnant women with no side effects.

That is a really awful story though. I feel for her family and poor husband.

S X

[Muppity]

While I feel very very sorry for any woman involved in such a terrible loss I think that this is an alarmist post.

Tamiful (and Relenza) and both rated as Category C drugs. This means that they have not been tested in pregnant women. There is a reason for this - it is unethical to do drug tests on pregnant women so no drugs created in the last 30 years of so have been tested. Testing in pregnant women was stopped after the Thalidomide debacle.

But - having said that - there have been ZERO officially reported cases of serious side effects to either drug in pregnant women or any effects to their children post birth. And these are not really new drugs - they have been used to treat flu well before swine flu hit the news.

Anyone who wants to be properly informed can get information on this from the Adverse Drug Reactions Unit at the Therapeutic Goods Administration or the Australian Medical Association website. It is these people's jobs to asses and monitor the effectiveness or otherwise of drugs and they are very good at their job.

Swine flu can have very serious effects on pregnant women but so can any other flu - the "regular" flu kills thousands of Australians each year. So just because a woman didn't have swine flu doesn't mean that treatment with Tamiflu was inappropriate.

If the poor lady had taken a cold and flu tablet or an antihistamine (almost all of which are also Category C drugs) would people be blaming that? Unfortunately sometimes babies just die - it is a sad reality of life.

[Just Me]

I had a confirmed case of swine flu while pg and took Tamiflu - leaving swine flu untreated seemed to pose a lot more risk than taking the prescribed meds for it. A number of women in Townsville lost babies or their babies became brain damaged as a result of swine flu and there were people here that died from swine flu (who were not pregnant at all). I did ask about the risks and while there had been very little testing, there were no conclusive reports of pregnant women having an adverse reaction to Tamiflu.

It is a horrible predicament to be in - to make the choice between full blown swine flu or using Tamiflu. Both may be detrimental in pg but for me, tamiflu seemed to be a safer option for me and my baby. I had no bad side effects from Tamiflu and found that my symptoms of swine flu were far less severe than those experienced by my DH and 2 children, who were not able to have Tamiflu.

The choice to use Tamiflu or not use Tamiflu has to be made quickly once flu symptoms present themselves - it is ineffective after symptoms have been present for more than 24 hours I think. That is why if you have any symptoms of swine flu (having a temp over 38 degrees is the main symptom) you have to see a doctor immediately. They are unable to prescribe tamiflu after the first day or two.

Swine flu is a horrible sickness and particularly risky for pregnant women and their babies. It is not ideal to have tamiflu but it seems to be safer than letting swine flu follow its natural course.

[Bumperstump Cummerbund]

Footy Friends Rally After Perkin loses Wife and Son

I believe this is the article in question, I remember reading it a couple of days ago on Yahoo News - it was a headliner, so not that hard to find. Although, perhaps the mods could move this thread to News and Current Events??

[Mother Goose]

Just coming to back up what Muppity has said. In the information leaflet that comes in the box for Tamiflu, it specifically states it should not be taken by pregnant or breast feeding women.

I also want to add that due to the wide spread incidence of Swine Flu and the fact it hasn't been as bad as they thought it would be for those contracting it (remembering MOST people who have contracted it have been no worse than when suffering a case of "normal" flu), DHS in Vic (and the equivalant in most other States) have decided AGAINST testing for swine flu. It is no longer protocol. Tamiflu can also be given for more common strands of the flu and not just Swine flu.

My heart goes out to the family involved and I hope they are able to conclusively find ou the cause of the baby's death as well as resolve Mum's ongoing condition.

MG

[NaeNae]

Gosh what a terribly sad story.

I wonder if there was an underlying condition? if she already had flu like symptoms I wonder that had something to do with the babies death particularly if she had a fever?? Perhaps her body was just too weak to fight the illness?? who knows for certain what was the actual cause of death on both accounts??

You rarely hear about follow up about these things, if something is made public about the cause of death to the baby and mother can someone please post it. I find the media frustrating because they often do an initial report that gets everyone talking but you very rarely see a follow up when its the average person.

Nae x

[JellyBean]

Thanks to sunflower girlie for posting the link. As I said, nothing is conclusive, and it does indeed sound like the woman had an allergic reaction to the drug - which is certainly not something every woman who has taken tamiflu has encountered.
It does however state on the package insert that allergic reaction can occur, and that it is not known whether or not taking tamiflu whilst pregnant or breastfeeding can harm the unborn baby, because, as Muppity said, of course it would be unethical to do such tests on pregnant women. Below is a list of side effects and ingredients as listed on the package insert. Although I wonder how many women would thoroughly investigate these ingredients for potential allergy prior to taking the drug if it has been recommended to them as the best course of action....? I'm more than a little curious as to why they would use talc and artificial colours in a drug such as this

Side effects
Tell your doctor or pharmacist as
soon as possible if you do not feel
well while you are taking
TAMIFLU.
TAMIFLU helps most people with
influenza but it may have unwanted
side effects in a few people.
All medicines can have side effects.
Sometimes they are serious, most of
the time they are not. You may need
medical treatment if you get some of
the side effects.
Ask your doctor or pharmacist to
answer any questions you may
have.
Tell your doctor if you notice any
of the following and they worry
you:
* nausea (feeling like vomiting)
* vomiting
* stomach ache
These are the more common side
effects of TAMIFLU. Mostly these
are mild.
Taking TAMIFLU with food may
reduce the potential for some or all of
these side effects.
People with influenza, including
those taking TAMIFLU may be at an
increased risk of seizures, confusion,
hallucinations, and/or abnormal
behaviour during their illness. These
events may occur shortly after
beginning TAMIFLU or may occur
when influenza is not treated. These
events are uncommon but may result
in accidental injury to the patient.
Patients, especially children and
adolescents, should be closely
monitored and their healthcare
professional should be contacted
immediately if the patient shows any
signs of unusual behaviour.
This is not a complete list of all
possible side effects. Others may
occur in some people and there may
be some side effects not yet known.

Do not take TAMIFLU if:
1. you have had an allergic
reaction to TAMIFLU or any
ingredients listed at the end of
this leaflet;

Ingredients
Active ingredient -
oseltamivir
* 30 mg capsules contain 30 mg
oseltamivir (present as 39.4 mg
oseltamivir phosphate).
* 45 mg capsules contain 45 mg
oseltamivir (present as 59.1 mg
oseltamivir phosphate).
* 75 mg capsules contain 75 mg
oseltamivir (present as 98.5 mg
oseltamivir phosphate)
Inactive ingredients -
* Capsule contents:
- maize starch
- povidone K 30
- croscarmellose sodium
TAMIFLU(R) 5
- talc
- sodium stearylfumarate
* Capsule shell:
- gelatin
- titanium dioxide (171)
- black iron oxide (172)
- red iron oxide (172)
- yellow iron oxide (172)
- shellac (904)
- indigo carmine (132)
TAMIFLU capsules are gluten free
and lactose free.

Tamiflu 12mg/ml Oral Suspension

Oseltamivir
Saccharin sodium (E954)
Sodium benzoate (E211)
Sodium dihydrogen citrate (E331 (a))
Sorbitol (E420)
Titanium dioxide (E171)
Tutti Frutti flavour
Maltodextrins (maize)
Propylene glycol
Arabic gum (E414)
Natural identical flavouring substances(mainly consisting of banana, pineapple and peach flavour)
Xantham gum (E415)

[Just Me]

I also want to add that due to the wide spread incidence of Swine Flu and the fact it hasn't been as bad as they thought it would be for those contracting it (remembering MOST people who have contracted it have been no worse than when suffering a case of "normal" flu), DHS in Vic (and the equivalant in most other States) have decided AGAINST testing for swine flu. It is no longer protocol. Tamiflu can also be given for more common strands of the flu and not just Swine flu.

They are still testing pregnant women, indigenous people and healthcare workers in Queensland for swine flu. Unborn babies and pregnant women are particularly at risk of harm from this disease. At the time that I got swine flu, there were a number of pregnant women in intensive care at the Townsville hospital due to having swine flu. One woman lost her baby due to swine flu at 36 weeks. Townsville had a particularly bad epidemic with over half of the states deaths occuring here. At the time the recommendation was to prescribe Tamiflu to the at risk group and I think it still remains so.

Because of what was happening around me to other pregnant women, having swine flu was particularly worrying. I feel very fortunate that for me it worked out okay and I have a healthy baby. There are other women in my community that are not so fortunate.

I agree there are risks to taking Tamiflu, but I don't think you can trivialise the dangers that swine flu itself poses to pregnancy and potential harm it can do to babies. For some people, swine flu was far more harmful than a regular flu. It is not the full blown epidemic causing death in every person that they predicted it would be (thank goodness) but it is still very serious and should not be understated.

[Mother Goose]

I agree there are risks to taking Tamiflu, but I don't think you can trivialise the dangers that swine flu itself poses to pregnancy and potential harm it can do to babies. For some people, swine flu was far more harmful than a regular flu. It is not the full blown epidemic causing death in every person that they predicted it would be (thank goodness) but it is still very serious and should not be understated.

Pls don't think I was trivialising Swine Flu - I certainly wasn't. I was stating overall circumstances - not signalling out any one demographic. In Vic, at risk groups are still given Tamiflu as well - I was certainly given it on the basis of my profession and the fact I have a toddler at home. Hopefully the vaccine (which is starting to be rolled out this month and targeting very specific groups such as pregnant women, ppl with specific conditions, the elderly, the very young, health care workers etc) will be able to further decrease any incidence in swine flu.

[Just Me]

Sorry MG - That was more of a general statement not really meant to be aimed at you. I should have been a bit more clear about that

I think swine flu has been a bit trivialised all over the community because it wasn't anywhere near as bad as initially thought, but there are still risks. Some of the people that died here from it, died because they didn't seek help until they were very very ill rather than catching it in the early stages. This is particularly true for pregnant women. There's a lot to be said for early intervention.