Psychiatry Investig.  2010 Dec;7(4):302-304.

Oseltamivir (Tamiflu) Induced Depressive Episode in a Female Adolescent

• Chung S
• Joung YS

Abstract

Oseltamivir was developed for prophylactic and therapeutic use against influenza, specifically targeting the viral enzyme's highly-conserved active site. In recent years, there have been case reports of neuropsychiatric events during or after oseltamivir treatment, in Japan and other countries. However, a search of the literature revealed no such cases in South Korea. We present the case of a 15-year-old female adolescent diagnosed with depressive episode after taking oseltamivir. Oseltamivir is generally well tolerated. Its most frequent adverse effects include nausea and vomiting, diarrhea, and abdominal pain. In influenza patients taking oseltamivir, neuropsychiatric adverse events include delirium, behavioral disturbance, suicide, delusion, panic attack, convulsion, depressed mood, loss of consciousness, etc. Reportedly, such neuropsychiatric adverse events were more common in children than in adults and generally occurred within 48 hours of administration. Here, we report a retrospective review case of an oseltamivir-related neuropsychiatric event in a female adolescent in South Korea.

Keyword

Oseltamivir; Depressive episode; Adolescent

MeSH Terms

Abdominal Pain
Adolescent
Adult
Catalytic Domain
Child
Delirium
Delusions
Diarrhea
Female
Humans
Influenza, Human
Japan
Nausea
Oseltamivir
Panic Disorder
Republic of Korea
Retrospective Studies
Seizures
Suicide
Unconsciousness
Vomiting
Oseltamivir