WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. regulators have approved emergency use of one experimental new antiviral drug against pandemic flu and researchers say several more in the pipeline may provide better ways to fight the virus. Late on Friday the Food and Drug Administration issued an authorization for peramivir, made by Biocryst Pharmaceuticals Inc and licensed to Shionogi & Co Ltd. The ...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama has declared 2009 H1N1 swine flu a national emergency, the White House said on Saturday. The declaration will make it easier for U.S. medical facilities to handle a surge in flu patients by allowing the waiver of some requirements of Medicare, Medicaid and other federal health insurance programs as needed, the White House said ...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A top U.S. health official said on Wednesday new influenza drugs could be approved within days for people critically ill with swine flu and assured Congress that H1N1 vaccine production problems have been overcome. Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said government scientists would soon decide whether to approve the intravenous use of experimental drugs for ...

GlaxoSmithKline has notified doctors of at least one death caused by a inappropriate use of its anti-flu medication Relenza. In a letter sent Thursday to doctors, Glaxo said the death resulted after the drug was reformulated into a liquid form, something not recommended by the Food and Drug Administration. The agency posted the letter online Friday. It did not provide ...