BMJ have responded
http://www.bmj.com/content/350/bmj.h258
R
-----Original Message-----
From: Evidence based health (EBH) [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Wouter Havinga
Sent: Tuesday, 12 January 2016 7:56 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: flu – USE OF ANTIVIRAL MEDICINES - now recommended
Thank you Richard, Susan and Andrew for http://www.rcgp.org.uk/clinical-and-research/our-programmes/~/media/Files/CIRC/Research-and-Surveillance-Centre/RCGP-PHE%20flu%20document%20FINAL.ashx
Personally I think if there is a need for large documents to try and persuade people that there might be some evidence, I think it is more down to lobbying and hiding incomplete data.
As far as I can make out the benefit (currently..) might be 16hr reduction in symptoms?
I think it is odd to think that the RCGP has an antibiotic advice leaflet http://www.rcgp.org.uk/clinical/target-antibiotics-toolkit/~/media/Files/CIRC/TARGET/Patient-Antibiotic-leaflet.ashx discouraging antibiotic use when there is also a benefit of reducing time of "ill health" http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15106140 but at the same time doing the opposite with antivirals where the evidence is based on lobbying and hiding data.
I think it is odd that the RCCGP try to teach GPs to avoid prescribing antibiotics in order to prevent resistance from developing in bacteria but at the same time advise to prescribe antivirals for viruses that are even quicker! in developing resistance than bacteria.
There does not seem to be any sense when people are against homeopathy but in favour of expensive drugs where the evidence is constructed around ideology and shareholders incomes.
I think general practice is on a downward gradient when we are prescribing medication not for health reasons but for economic reasons, loss of work hours and income for GPs.
For example the flu vaccine is driven by financial incentives for GPs. It seems to me that the RCGP comes up with ideological talk to persuade the public so as not to loose income and actually resorts to installing fear (and they keep wondering why GPs are so busy). http://www.rcgp.org.uk/news/2015/november/thousands-of-patients-risking-their-health-by-shunning-flu-jab.aspx But in this document there is no mentioning about NNT or NNH. There are also no cohort studies to compare with unvaccinated groups when there is evidence that repeated vaccination makes people more vulnerable?
Money seems to be the overarching driving force?
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