Baloxavir may prevent influenza in exposed household contacts: NEJM

Japan: Single-dose of Baloxavir may help in the prevention of influenza in household contacts of patients with the flu, a recent study in the New England Journal of Medicine has found.
Baloxavir marboxil (baloxavir), a polymerase acidic protein endonuclease inhibitor, is currently approved for influenza treatment. It has clinical efficacy in the treatment of uncomplicated influenza, including in outpatients at increased risk for complications. Hideyuki Ikematsu, Ricerca Clinica, Fukuoka (H.I.), Japan, and colleagues set out to evaluate the postexposure prophylactic efficacy of baloxavir in household contacts of index patients with confirmed influenza during the 2018–2019 season in Japan.
For the purpose, they conducted a multicenter, double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial. A total of 752 household contacts of 545 index patients were assigned in the ratio 1:1 to receive either a single dose of baloxavir or placebo. The primary endpoint was clinical influenza, as confirmed by reverse-transcriptase–polymerase-chain-reaction testing, over a period of 10 days. The occurrence of baloxavir-selected PA substitutions associated with reduced susceptibility was assessed.
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