According to the CDC, the human swine flu outbreak continues to grow in the United States and internationally. The World Health Organization has raised the worldwide pandemic alert level to Phase 5. While people are being advised not to panic, there is an expected and appropriate level of concern.
For arthritis patients who take disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs) or biologics there may be even more uneasiness and reason to worry. One of our forum members wrote, "With all the news reports about swine flu has anyone thought about when to worry about it? Like, when do those who are on biologics stop going out in the public or start wearing a mask when they do? Is it worth getting a prescription for Tamiflu or an anti-viral to have on hand?"
Good questions! Are those on drugs that affect the immune system more susceptible to flu -- and should they be taking even more precautions than the general public? We took our questions to rheumatologist Scott J. Zashin, MD. First of all, Dr. Zashin recommended following the news and advice on the CDC Swine Flu website (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) and the WHO swine flu website (World Health Organization).
Dr. Zashin added, "There is no evidence that this year's flu vaccine helps with the swine flu strain. If someone wants to take the flu shot though, I will give it to them. In patients who have some lowered immunity due to rheumatoid arthritis drugs, I will recommend that they take Tamiflu if they develop signs or symptoms of influenza. Supposedly, the U.S. cases are milder than the Mexican cases where there have been deaths from the virus (time will tell). I recommend rheumatoid arthritis patients continue their treatments with DMARDs and biologics. If they are overly-worried, they can wear a mask in public -- preferably a N95 mask."
Related Resources:
- Should People With Rheumatoid Arthritis / Rheumatic Diseases Get a Flu Shot?
- How Do You Avoid Colds, Flu, Infection When You Take Immunosuppressive Drugs?
- Flu Vaccine Protects Against Contagious Virus
- More About Flu Prevention
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Photo by Dusan Zidar (iStockphoto)
