Why finish tamiflu??

cozyblanket

Wed, Feb 07 2018, 10:32 pm

Ds8 has had 3 doses and is feeling great and going to school tomorrow. I always finish antibiotic courses etc, but what us the point of finishing an antiviral? He has 7 doses left. Can anyone explain this? I am thinking of stopping.

BH he didn't have side effects at all... Other than complaining about the "ichy pichy taste."

Please share thoughts!! Thank you!

amother

Scarlet

Wed, Feb 07 2018, 10:37 pm

My sons said to take twice a day for 5 days. After that I called the doctor cuz there was still a decent amount left in the bottle. They said not to take anymore. I dont think its the same as regular antibiotics, but I assume your kid needs more then 3 doses to help keep him feeling better. I would ask the doctor,

unexpected

Wed, Feb 07 2018, 10:54 pm

I did this with my 8 year old son. He was refusing to take it and feeling so much better. I asked the dr for permission and he said "yeaaah ok" like he was hesitating but ultimately allowing. We didn't finish it, and he had three more days of low grade fever afterwards. Sent him back to yeshiva after the fourth. 2 weeks later he is still feeling fine.

amother

Violet

Wed, Feb 07 2018, 10:55 pm

My doctor put me on it but I was having all the horrible side effects and just stopped taking it after five days. For a kid I'd ask the doctor.

flowerpower

Wed, Feb 07 2018, 11:56 pm

I gave each kid the first 2-3 doses just. After that they got better so wasn't necessary.

cozyblanket

Thu, Feb 08 2018, 12:09 am

flowerpower wrote:

I gave each kid the first 2-3 doses just. After that they got better so wasn't necessary.

Exactly. What is the benefit of continuing?? Can any of the above posters explain why they continued? I don't have time before school and work to make him a big enough meal to procede a dose, so we will see what seems right tomorrow after school... And I will keep following this thread too!

Thank you everyone!

Chayalle

Thu, Feb 08 2018, 9:39 am

Following. My DD just took 4th dose of tamiflu (pill form) and she's still sick. I was hoping it would work faster! But one good thing - she hasn't vomited since yesterday morning. I guess that's an improvement. Prior to that, she vomited 5 times in less than 24 hours.

Other DD had an allergic reaction and had to stop the tamiflu after first dose.

dancingqueen

Thu, Feb 08 2018, 10:16 am

It’s the same problem as not finishing a pack of antibiotics. Not finishing makes the treatment less effective and can lead to the virus developing resistance.

Luckily my kids are having no problems with the tamiflu so finishing is no big deal.

amother

Slategray

Thu, Feb 08 2018, 4:47 pm

Tamiflu doesn't actually kill the flu viruses, it just stops them from being able to spread (and infect) other cells in your body, so you have to wait for them to die themselves, and this takes some time. This is why you should make sure to take it for a minimum of 5 days (unless your doctor says otherwise for some reason), because it will just start spreading in your body again and you'll get sicker.