The preventive effect of human interferon-alpha on influenza infection; modification of clinical manifestations of influenza in children in a closed community.

A double-blind, controlled trial to ascertain the preventive effect of human interferon-alpha (Hu IFN-alpha) on upper respiratory viral infections was performed on children in a closed community. Drops of Hu IFN-alpha were instilled into the nasal cavity of 13 healthy children aged one to three years. Fourteen children were given placebos as controls. Administration of the interferon and clinical observations were carried out in the winter of 1980. Serological examination revealed that this was the period of outbreaks of influenza type A epidemics in the community. Clinical manifestations referable to influenza virus infection were milder in the interferon-treated group than in the controls. However, there was no significant difference in the serological responses of the two groups after infection with influenza virus type A.