County ERs see surge in worried parents
By Keith Darc?
Union-Tribune Staff Writer
2:00 a.m. October 17, 2009
Some emergency rooms in the county are reporting a spike in activity after county health officials said Wednesday that a local child had died from swine flu.
While acknowledging people's concerns about the disease, physicians are urging people to stay calm and seek hospital care only when serious symptoms arise.
Much of the boost in emergency-room traffic is coming from parents worried that their children might now be more susceptible to the H1N1 influenza virus.
The hardest-hit emergency room appeared to be at Rady Children's Hospital in San Diego, which handled 250 patients Thursday and 230 more as of 4 p.m. yesterday, said Dr. Ghazala Sharieff, medical director of Rady's emergency department.
Some of the incoming children weren't sick at all and most of the others had mild flu-like symptoms, which don't require emergency attention, she said.
Sharieff advised parents to pay close attention to their children, especially if they become ill, but to avoid overreacting.
?If you're concerned about your children and they aren't acting normally, then you need to see? a doctor, she said. ?But if they are acting normally, running around, don't feed into the hysteria and come to the emergency room.?
Such visits also spiked in recent days at Sharp Chula Vista Medical Center, Scripps Mercy Hospital in Chula Vista and Scripps Memorial Hospital in La Jolla.
Intensive-care units at the Scripps hospitals have been full of influenza patients this week, said nurse Patty Skoglund, who oversees disaster preparedness for Scripps Health. That level isn't normally seen until the peak of the common flu season in February and March, she said.
Clinics operated by UCSD Medical Center also are seeing more visits from people anxious about the flu, said hospital spokeswoman Kim Edwards.
At the federal level, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said there have been 86 juvenile deaths from swine flu in the United States since the current strain of the disease appeared in April.
Forty-three of those children died after Aug. 29. That number is nearly equal to the total ? 50 youngsters ? for the typical eight-month flu season.
?These are very sobering statistics,? said Dr. Anne Schuchat, director of the CDC Influenza Division. ?Unfortunately, they are likely to increase.?
Widespread flu infections were reported in 41 states yesterday, including California, the agency said.
San Diego County's first child to succumb to swine flu was Alitza Ortiz Sanchez, 5, of Otay Mesa, who died Oct. 10 at Rady Children's Hospital. Doctors described Alitza's case as extremely unusual ? she suffered heart failure ? and said most people who come down with the virus experience mild symptoms and recover within a few days.
INFLUENZA 101
?To get lists of vaccination clinics for regular and swine flu, go to sdiz.org/flu/index.html or call the 211 phone service.
?To report side effects from the H1N1 vaccine, go to vaers.hhs.gov/index.
?In general, seek medical attention when you have serious flu symptoms, including dehydration, disorientation, persistently high fever, lethargy, rapid heart rate and respiratory problems.
?Mild symptoms include coughing, diarrhea, fever, runny nose, sore throat and vomiting.
Union-Tribune
By Keith Darc?
Union-Tribune Staff Writer
2:00 a.m. October 17, 2009
Some emergency rooms in the county are reporting a spike in activity after county health officials said Wednesday that a local child had died from swine flu.
While acknowledging people's concerns about the disease, physicians are urging people to stay calm and seek hospital care only when serious symptoms arise.
Much of the boost in emergency-room traffic is coming from parents worried that their children might now be more susceptible to the H1N1 influenza virus.
The hardest-hit emergency room appeared to be at Rady Children's Hospital in San Diego, which handled 250 patients Thursday and 230 more as of 4 p.m. yesterday, said Dr. Ghazala Sharieff, medical director of Rady's emergency department.
Some of the incoming children weren't sick at all and most of the others had mild flu-like symptoms, which don't require emergency attention, she said.
Sharieff advised parents to pay close attention to their children, especially if they become ill, but to avoid overreacting.
?If you're concerned about your children and they aren't acting normally, then you need to see? a doctor, she said. ?But if they are acting normally, running around, don't feed into the hysteria and come to the emergency room.?
Such visits also spiked in recent days at Sharp Chula Vista Medical Center, Scripps Mercy Hospital in Chula Vista and Scripps Memorial Hospital in La Jolla.
Intensive-care units at the Scripps hospitals have been full of influenza patients this week, said nurse Patty Skoglund, who oversees disaster preparedness for Scripps Health. That level isn't normally seen until the peak of the common flu season in February and March, she said.
Clinics operated by UCSD Medical Center also are seeing more visits from people anxious about the flu, said hospital spokeswoman Kim Edwards.
At the federal level, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said there have been 86 juvenile deaths from swine flu in the United States since the current strain of the disease appeared in April.
Forty-three of those children died after Aug. 29. That number is nearly equal to the total ? 50 youngsters ? for the typical eight-month flu season.
?These are very sobering statistics,? said Dr. Anne Schuchat, director of the CDC Influenza Division. ?Unfortunately, they are likely to increase.?
Widespread flu infections were reported in 41 states yesterday, including California, the agency said.
San Diego County's first child to succumb to swine flu was Alitza Ortiz Sanchez, 5, of Otay Mesa, who died Oct. 10 at Rady Children's Hospital. Doctors described Alitza's case as extremely unusual ? she suffered heart failure ? and said most people who come down with the virus experience mild symptoms and recover within a few days.
INFLUENZA 101
?To get lists of vaccination clinics for regular and swine flu, go to sdiz.org/flu/index.html or call the 211 phone service.
?To report side effects from the H1N1 vaccine, go to vaers.hhs.gov/index.
?In general, seek medical attention when you have serious flu symptoms, including dehydration, disorientation, persistently high fever, lethargy, rapid heart rate and respiratory problems.
?Mild symptoms include coughing, diarrhea, fever, runny nose, sore throat and vomiting.
Union-Tribune