Rapivab – Similar Flu Treatment As Tamiflu Gets Approval

Late last year, the American Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved a new flu treatment, called Rapivab.

Rapivab (peramivir) is an intravenous neuraminidase inhibitor designed to treat patients 18 years and older who are suffering with acute uncomplicated influenza for more than two days.

Uncomplicated influenza is characterised by the sudden onset of flu-related fever, muscle pain, headaches, malaise, non-productive cough, sore throat, and rhinitis (irritation and inflammation of the nasal mucous membrane).

So an ‘acute’ case of flu really still is just the flu no matter how you dress it up.

Rapivab – a familiar wolf in sheep’s clothing

Rapivab is in the same family of drugs as Tamiflu.

That’s right, it’s very much the same drug that was used during the swine flu scare.

Remember that whole debacle?

When the world-renowned Cochrane researchers reopened their review of Tamiflu’s clinical studies after the so-called swine flu ‘pandemic’ (and after millions of people were given this drug), they found that Tamiflu did not reduce the chances of someone who gets the flu from developing more serious complications, it was ineffective in elderly and ill patients and it only reduced the duration of symptoms by as little as a day…

That’s aside from the fact that the whole Tamiflu business stank to high heaven from the onset. To begin with, two ghost-writers admitted to ‘writing’ several Tamiflu studies – embezzling and fabricating the truth under the instruction to embed a pro-Tamiflu message in their work.

The real kicker is that Rapivab can give you the same horrible side effects as Tamiflu, including nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea. More severe side-effects include serious skin reactions that include the burning of your skin from the inside out.

Rapivab also shares a side effect with Tamiflu that Big Pharma likes to call a “change in behaviour”, when in fact it’s more like “seeing things that are not really there”… or “hallucinations” as I like to call them.

But don’t think Rapivab is new to the market. In 2009, during the “great swine flu hoax”, the FDA gave BioCryst (the manufacturers of Rapivab) an “emergency authorisation” allowing doctors to use Rapivab before it was approved.

However, three years after the great swine flu scandal, the axe dropped on Rapivab.

BioCryst suddenly stopped its study on the drug, saying it was “unlikely” it would present it for approval to the FDA.

Of course, the company said that discontinuing the study had nothing to do with “unexpected” adverse events. According to them it was because of problems with a “planned interim analysis”… whatever that means.

And yet, those problems with a “planned interim analysis” eventually did not stop BioCryst from getting Rapivab approved by the FDA.

Even though the FDA approved this treatment, the agency warns that – if it works at all – Rapivab can possibly “reduce” your flu symptoms a day sooner than if you took a placebo.

I don’t know. Considering the risks of terrible skin burns, hallucinations and delirium, I’d much rather have another bowl of chicken soup and stay in bed for one more day. The results will be the same, minus the side effects.

Currently, Rapivab is only available in the US as well as registered users in the UK – meaning through private medical insurance if your doctor makes it available.

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Disclaimer: Bear in mind the material contained in this article is provided for information purposes only. We are not addressing anyone’s personal situation. Please consult with your own physician before acting on any recommendations contained herein.

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Sources:

“FDA approves Rapivab to treat flu infection” FDA news release, December 22, 2014, fda.gov

“Study the Possible Protective and Therapeutic Influence of Coriander (Coriandrum sativum L.) Against Neurodegenerative Disorders and Alzheimer’s disease Induced by Aluminum Chloride in Cerebral Cortex of Male Albino Rats” Enas, A Khalil, Nature and Science, sciencepub.net