Browsing by Subject "baloxavir"

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    Modeling mitigation of influenza epidemics by baloxavir
    (Nature Communications, 2020-06) Du, Zhanwei; Nugent, Ciara; Galvani, Alison P.; Krug, Robert M.; Meyers, Lauren Ancel
    Influenza viruses annually kill 290,000-650,000 people worldwide. Antivirals can reduce death tolls. Baloxavir, the recently approved influenza antiviral, inhibits initiation of viral mRNA synthesis, whereas oseltamivir, an older drug, inhibits release of virus progeny. Baloxavir blocks virus replication more rapidly and completely than oseltamivir, reducing the duration of infectiousness. Hence, early baloxavir treatment may indirectly prevent trans-mission. Here, we estimate impacts of ramping up and accelerating baloxavir treatment on population-level incidence using a new model that links viral load dynamics from clinical trial data to between-host transmission. We estimate that ~22 million infections and >6,000deaths would have been averted in the 2017-2018 epidemic season by administering baloxavir to 30% of infected cases within 48 h after symptom onset. Treatment within 24 h would almost double the impact. Consequently, scaling up early baloxavir treatment would substantially reduce influenza morbidity and mortality every year. The development of antivirals against the SARS-CoV2 virus that function like baloxavir might similarly curtail transmission and save lives.
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    Reducing Influenza Virus Transmission: The Potential Value of Antiviral Treatment
    (Clinical Infectious Diseases, 2021-07) Hayden, Frederick G.; Asher, Jason; Cowling, Benjamin J.; Hurt, Aeron C.; Ikematsu, Hideyuki; Kuhlbusch, Klaus; Lemenuel-Diot, Annabelle; Du, Zhanwei; Meyers, Lauren Ancel; Piedra, Pedro A.; Takazono, Takahiro; Yen, Hui-Ling; Monto, Arnold S.
    Prompt antiviral treatment has the potential to reduce influenza virus transmission to close contacts, but rigorous data on the magnitude of treatment effects on transmission are limited. Animal model data indicate that rapid reductions in viral replication after antiviral treatment reduce the risk of transmission. Observational and clinical trial data with oseltamivir and other neuraminidase inhibitors indicate that prompt treatment of household index patients seems to reduce the risk of illness in contacts, although the magnitude of the reported effects has varied widely across studies. In addition, the potential risk of transmitting drug-resistant variants exists with all approved classes of influenza antivirals. A controlled trial examining baloxavir treatment efficacy to reduce transmission, including the risk of transmitting virus with reduced baloxavir susceptibility, is currently in progress. If reduced transmission risk is confirmed, modeling studies indicate that early treatment could have major epidemiologic benefits in seasonal and pandemic influenza.