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Source: http://www.statesman.com/blogs/cont...009/08/18/travis_county_teen_dies_of_swi.html
Travis County teen dies of swine flu
By Mary Ann Roser | Tuesday, August 18, 2009, 11:08 AM
A 14-year-old Austin boy has died of swine flu ? the second Travis County swine flu death, according to Dr. Philip Huang, medical director of the Austin/Travis County Health and Human Services Department.
Huang said the boy died in a San Antonio hospital but did not know the circumstances that led to his out-of-town hospitalization. Huang said he believed the boy had underlying health conditions that could have contributed to the death, but that was still under investigation.
The health department did not issue a news release about the death like it did when a 49 year-old Pflugerville man died of swine flu, but it mentioned the death in an update on its Web site. In addition to the two deaths, 14 county residents have been hospitalized because of swine flu since the outbreak began in April.
Huang said he did not know the child?s date of death and confidentiality laws prohibited him from disclosing additional details, including the name.
The Texas Department of State Health Services said in its latest flu update for the week ending Aug. 8 that ?a 14-year-old resident of Health Service Region 7,? which includes Travis County, had died during the first week of August. The report said it was not yet known ?whether the child had significant underlying medical conditions; however, the child had a methicillin-sensitive Staphylococcus aureus infection during his influenza illness.?
That kind of Staph infection can sometimes be deadly. Staph and flu also can be a deadly combination if the Staph has invaded the lungs.
Texas has reported 14 flu-related deaths in children during the 2008-09 influenza season, including from seasonal and the novel H1N1 swine flu.
State health department spokeswoman Emily Palmer said she did not have a current count of overall swine flu deaths in adults and children in Texas. The latest count, which is a couple of weeks old, is 28, she said.
Nationally, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported 477 deaths and 7,511 hospitalized cases as of Friday. It updates the site once a week.
Travis County teen dies of swine flu
By Mary Ann Roser | Tuesday, August 18, 2009, 11:08 AM
A 14-year-old Austin boy has died of swine flu ? the second Travis County swine flu death, according to Dr. Philip Huang, medical director of the Austin/Travis County Health and Human Services Department.
Huang said the boy died in a San Antonio hospital but did not know the circumstances that led to his out-of-town hospitalization. Huang said he believed the boy had underlying health conditions that could have contributed to the death, but that was still under investigation.
The health department did not issue a news release about the death like it did when a 49 year-old Pflugerville man died of swine flu, but it mentioned the death in an update on its Web site. In addition to the two deaths, 14 county residents have been hospitalized because of swine flu since the outbreak began in April.
Huang said he did not know the child?s date of death and confidentiality laws prohibited him from disclosing additional details, including the name.
The Texas Department of State Health Services said in its latest flu update for the week ending Aug. 8 that ?a 14-year-old resident of Health Service Region 7,? which includes Travis County, had died during the first week of August. The report said it was not yet known ?whether the child had significant underlying medical conditions; however, the child had a methicillin-sensitive Staphylococcus aureus infection during his influenza illness.?
That kind of Staph infection can sometimes be deadly. Staph and flu also can be a deadly combination if the Staph has invaded the lungs.
Texas has reported 14 flu-related deaths in children during the 2008-09 influenza season, including from seasonal and the novel H1N1 swine flu.
State health department spokeswoman Emily Palmer said she did not have a current count of overall swine flu deaths in adults and children in Texas. The latest count, which is a couple of weeks old, is 28, she said.
Nationally, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported 477 deaths and 7,511 hospitalized cases as of Friday. It updates the site once a week.
