TREATMENTS YOUR PROVIDER MAY PRESCRIBE

Treatment for Avian Influenza





There is no certain treatment for avian influenza. Some drugs (antivirals) that are used to treat human influenza may be helpful for patients with avian influenza, but for both, these drugs are designed to shorten the duration and severity of symptoms; the illness must run its course. The earlier in the course of illness these drugs are started, the better. If one person in a family develops avian influenza, the other family members may receive an antiviral in order to protect against illness (although at this time the disease is not thought to be contagious person to person). There is a specific vaccine for one strain of avian influenza; the vaccine will be made available to the public in the event of an outbreak. The human influenza vaccine that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention makes public every year does not protect against avian influenza.