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Joan Stephenson, PhD

JAMA. 2000;284:3115-3116.

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text and any section headings.

Seattle—In the midst of worries about the influenza vaccine shortage this season comes a bit of good news: A new study reported here at the annual meeting of the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology has found that the antiviral drug zanamivir is safe for patients with underlying asthma and/or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

EARLY WORRY

When zanamivir, a neuraminidase inhibitor, was approved in 1999, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) cautioned that the drug had "not been shown to be effective, and may carry risk, in patients with severe or decompensated asthma or [COPD]." Concern about the drug's safety in such patients had been raised by reports that some patients with mild or moderate asthma experienced bronchospasm after taking zanamivir.

The new findings, which documented benefits of giving the drug to patients with these chronic respiratory conditions without evidence of an increased . . . [Full Text of this Article]

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