Treatment FAQ

how viruses can become resistant to treatment

by Prof. Isadore Shanahan Published 2 years ago Updated 1 year ago
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As a flu virus replicates (i.e., make copies of itself), the genetic makeup may change in a way that results in the virus becoming less susceptible to one or more of the antiviral drugs used to treat or prevent flu.Sep 9, 2021

How do viruses become resistant?

The genetic barrier reflects the number and type of mutations that must be accumulated in order for the virus to develop significant drug resistance while maintaining adequate growth. Lamivudine is an intermediate potency drug with a low genetic barrier to resistance, resulting in high resistance rates.

What is antibiotic and antiviral drug resistance How does it happen?

Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) occurs when bacteria, viruses, fungi and parasites change over time and no longer respond to medicines making infections harder to treat and increasing the risk of disease spread, severe illness and death.

What kind of virus that has infected humans and has resistant to the antiviral medication such as amantadine and rimantadine?

Amantadine and Rimantadine (Adamantanes) Resistance to adamantanes remains high among influenza A viruses currently circulating. Therefore, amantadine and rimantadine are not recommended for antiviral treatment or chemoprophylaxis of currently circulating influenza A virus strains.

Why is it difficult to make antiviral drugs?

Making anti-viral drugs is more difficult than making anti-bacterial medicines because viruses have very few biochemical mechanisms of their own. They make use of host machinery which replicates. So it is very much difficult to find the targets where these drugs get interfered by not making any harm to the host.

Why are viruses immune to antibiotics?

Viruses are surrounded by a protective protein coating; they don't have cell walls that can be attacked by antibiotics like bacteria does. It is because of this that antibiotics don't work on viruses.

Are viruses resistant to antibiotics?

Viruses can't reproduce on their own, like bacteria do, instead they attach themselves to healthy cells and reprogram those cells to make new viruses. It is because of all of these differences that antibiotics don't work on viruses.

How does influenza become resistant?

Typically, flu virus is called resistant after sufficient evidence was gathered to prove a lack of antiviral effect of a particular antiviral medication in patients infected with such virus. In the United States, there are four FDA-approved antiviral drugs recommended by CDC this season.

When are antiviral treatments most effective?

The benefits of antiviral treatment are likely to be greatest if treatment is started as soon as possible after illness onset, and evidence for benefit is strongest in studies in which treatment was started within 48 hours of illness onset.

Can you develop resistance to vaccines?

Bacteria have evolved resistance to every antibiotic ever developed. Sometimes this happened very soon after an antibiotic was first introduced. It took just six years for resistance to penicillin, the first antibiotic, to become widespread in British hospitals. But resistance against vaccines has only happened rarely.

Do antiviral drugs work on Covid?

There is only one approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to treat coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). But many medications are being tested. The FDA has approved an antiviral drug called remdesivir (Veklury) to treat COVID-19 in adults and children who are age 12 and older.

Why is it more difficult to make anti viral medicines than antibiotics?

It is difficult to make antiviral medicines than making antibiotics because viruses have few biochemical mechanisms of their own. They enter the host cells and use their machinery for their life processes. So, antiviral medicines will work against the host body.

Is there an antiviral treatment for Covid 19?

Paxlovid is an oral antiviral pill that can be taken at home to help keep high-risk patients from getting so sick that they need to be hospitalized. So, if you test positive for the coronavirus and a health care provider writes you a prescription, you can take pills at home and lower your risk of going to the hospital.

How Does Reduced Susceptibility and Antiviral Resistance Happen?

  • Flu viruses are constantly changing; they can change in significant way from one season to the next and can even change within the course of one flu season. As a flu virus replicates (i.e., make copies of itself), the genetic makeup may change in a way that results in the virus becoming les…
See more on cdc.gov

How Are Reduced Susceptibility and Antiviral Resistance detected?

  • CDC routinely tests flu viruses collected through domestic and global surveillance to see if they have indications of reduced susceptibility to any of the FDA-approved flu antiviral drugs, as this can suggest the potential for antiviral resistance. In addition, numerous state public health laboratories participate in screening of additional viruses for genetic changes indicative of pote…
See more on cdc.gov

What Is Oseltamivir Resistance and What Causes It?

  • Flu viruses are constantly changing (for more information, see How the Flu Virus Can Change. Changes that occur in circulating flu viruses typically involve the structures of the viruses’ two primary surface proteins: hemagglutinin (HA) and neuraminidase (NA) (See image below for a visualization of a flu virus and its HA and NA surface proteins.) Oseltamivir is the most common…
See more on cdc.gov

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