Ronan Kelly
Retired 2020
Watford baby died after swine flu infection
10:31am Wednesday 31st March 2010
By Neil Skinner ?
A seven-month-old baby girl died just 24 hours after receiving treatment for swine flu, an inquest has heard.
Willo Lynch, of The Pelhams, Watford, died on Saturday, October 31, the day after she was given the antiviral drug Tamiflu by her family doctor and sent home.
Willo, who had suffered lung problems since her premature birth at 27 weeks, was rushed to Watford General Hospital when she stopped breathing at home.
Doctors, however, were unable to reverse damage to her lungs and could not save her life.
At an emotional inquest hearing yesterday afternoon, Hatfield Coroner?s Court heard an angry series of questions from Willo?s mother, who asked why her daughter wasn?t admitted to hospital as soon as her symptoms were diagnosed.
Fighting back tears, she asked: ?Swine flu was killing people like me and you all over the country. If a doctor suspected swine flu why was she not taken to hospital? There was no common sense here.?
Consultant paediatrician Dr Heather Mitchell, who led efforts to save Willo?s life, responded on behalf of the hospital.
She said Willo had been a very poorly child and argued it was unclear whether earlier hospital treatment would have been effective.
She added: ?Evidence from the day before [her last visit to a doctor] her lungs were clear. She was better than she had been.?
Dr Mitchell further explained that Willo was prescribed Tamilflu only as a precaution because of her complex medical history. Swine flu, she said, displayed very similar symptoms to more traditional forms of flu ? all of which could have taken a similar toll on her fragile body.
Deputy Coroner Graham Danbury passed a verdict of death by natural causes. He said: ?Clearly the cause of death was natural. It [swine flu] is an illness that occurs naturally and had particularly severe effects on Willo because of her condition.?
http://www.watfordobserver.co.uk/news/5991177.Baby_died_after_swine_flu_infection/
10:31am Wednesday 31st March 2010
By Neil Skinner ?
A seven-month-old baby girl died just 24 hours after receiving treatment for swine flu, an inquest has heard.
Willo Lynch, of The Pelhams, Watford, died on Saturday, October 31, the day after she was given the antiviral drug Tamiflu by her family doctor and sent home.
Willo, who had suffered lung problems since her premature birth at 27 weeks, was rushed to Watford General Hospital when she stopped breathing at home.
Doctors, however, were unable to reverse damage to her lungs and could not save her life.
At an emotional inquest hearing yesterday afternoon, Hatfield Coroner?s Court heard an angry series of questions from Willo?s mother, who asked why her daughter wasn?t admitted to hospital as soon as her symptoms were diagnosed.
Fighting back tears, she asked: ?Swine flu was killing people like me and you all over the country. If a doctor suspected swine flu why was she not taken to hospital? There was no common sense here.?
Consultant paediatrician Dr Heather Mitchell, who led efforts to save Willo?s life, responded on behalf of the hospital.
She said Willo had been a very poorly child and argued it was unclear whether earlier hospital treatment would have been effective.
She added: ?Evidence from the day before [her last visit to a doctor] her lungs were clear. She was better than she had been.?
Dr Mitchell further explained that Willo was prescribed Tamilflu only as a precaution because of her complex medical history. Swine flu, she said, displayed very similar symptoms to more traditional forms of flu ? all of which could have taken a similar toll on her fragile body.
Deputy Coroner Graham Danbury passed a verdict of death by natural causes. He said: ?Clearly the cause of death was natural. It [swine flu] is an illness that occurs naturally and had particularly severe effects on Willo because of her condition.?
http://www.watfordobserver.co.uk/news/5991177.Baby_died_after_swine_flu_infection/