The flu virus is becoming resistant to key drugs which are used to treat it, a study suggests.
Japanese researchers carried out tests on 50 children who were admitted to hospital with flu in 2002/3.
The results showed that nine children became resistant to the new generation of drugs used to fight the virus.
The findings, published in The Lancet, have sparked concern because these drugs would be needed if there were a flu pandemic.
The medicines belong to a class of drug called neuraminidase inhibitors.
They include Relenza, which is manufactured by GlaxoSmithKline, and Tamiflu, which is made by Roche.
These drugs are currently the most effective weapons against flu, they basicly confine the virus to the single cell that it has infected effectively stopping it from infecting a healthy cell as such containing the infection.
Scientists have previously known that certain strains of flu are resistant to these drugs, this research though indicates the resistance could be much more common than previously thought.
The research team at University of Tokyo suggested that the findings could have serious implications if there is a major outbreak of flu, and there could be a higher prevalence of resistant viruses during pandemic.
There is a consensus amongst some experts believe that a flu pandemic is overdue, during the 20th century there were three pandemics the biggest one in 1918 which was thought to have killed over 40m people worldwide.
There is a need for more and urgent research on the results say experts that would determine the consequences to the population.
But although the study shows resistance is higher than estimated the research into these resistant strains did not find any evidence to suggest that they can infect others, showing that although the virus can mutate they still cannot spread.
But expert opinion is this is an early alarm call that must be acted on and more should be learned about the resistant virus to avoid a potential disaster.source:Lancet/BBC
