An Ohio child died from complications from the flu, though health officials have declined to identify the age, gender and county in which the child lived. There have been also reports of a handful of Ohio adult deaths linked to the flu, but the state department does not tally adult deaths because there are often underlying health conditions involved.
Public health officials are still investigating Perry’s death for possible chronic health conditions that could have compromised her immune system and contributed to her death. But Perry appeared to have no other complications when she was initially diagnosed with the flu, said Sara Pappa, spokeswoman for the Greene County health department.
“In someone that young, you would think diabetes or asthma contributed’’ to her death, Pappa said. “But from what we know, this was a healthy 22-year-old.”
‘Please get your flu shot.’
Perry was a junior majoring in communications at Wright State University and working her way through school as a hostess and server at Milano’s restaurant in Beavercreek. She was also a 2008 graduate of Fairborn High School, where she was a member of the drill team. She was interested in nature, photography and horseback riding, said her grandmother, Joan Donohue of Fairborn.
“There was so much that made her special,” Donohue said. “She was vibrant. She was an absolutely beautiful girl. She was an all-around good person who had a lovely personality.”
Perry’s family said six days passed from the first time she was admitted to the emergency room at the Indu & Raj Soin Medical Center in Beavercreek and when she died at Kettering Medical Center in Kettering. She had flu, strep throat, double pneumonia and a staph infection in her blood when she died, her family said.
“So much went wrong so fast that we’re still trying to come to terms with it,” Donohue said. “She’ll be one of the most missed persons ever on this earth. It’s just devastating to the whole family. Please get your flu shot.”
“The world lost a special person,” said her grandfather, Jim Donohue.
Perry was among 692 Ohioans hospitalized with the flu in the first week of January, up from 388 in the previous week, according to numbers released today by Ohio Department of Health officials, who said it is still not too late to get a flu shot. The Ohio child who died is the first child to die from the flu in the state, since the 2010-11 flu season which claimed the life of one Ohio child.
“The good news about the vaccine this year is that so far, the vaccine is a good match for the viruses we are seeing in the population,” said Dr. Mary DiOrio, an epidemiologist with the Ohio Department of Health. “That’s why it’s really important for people to go out and get vaccinated if they haven’t already done so.”
Since the beginning of the flu season in October, there have been 1,922 flu-related hospitalizations Ohio. There were less than 100 through the same period last year.
Nationally, the flu kills between 3,000 and 49,000 people annually, but public health officials are not required to compile data on adult deaths, just for children.
“We are seeing a sharp increase in the number of flu cases in Ohio, and we’re seeing a huge increase in the number of hospitalizations,” DiOrio said. “We are looking at a moderate-to-severe flu season, but it’s really too early to know exactly what our peak is or will be.”
Vaccines still available in Ohio
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, this year’s flu season hit earlier and harder than previous years and continues to spread rapidly across the country, flooding emergency rooms and hospitals with sick patients and resulting in dozens of deaths in some areas. So far, 29 states are reporting high levels of influenza-like illness, according to the CDC. Those levels are 10 times higher in some cities than this time last year.
Perry was the second flu-related death reported in the local region this season.
An elderly man from Warren County who tested positive for influenza died about two weeks ago, but he also suffered from several other chronic conditions that could have contributed to his death, according to health officials.
In addition to the dramatic increase in hospitalizations nationwide, the some cities have even reported shortages of the flu vaccine and over-the-counter remedies like Tamiflu.
That’s not a problem here, said Bill Wharton, a spokesman for Public Health - Dayton & Montgomery County.
“We have plenty of available vaccine right now, and I have not heard about any of the box stores (such as Walmart or Walgreens) here locally not having vaccine or flu medicine available,” he said.
Wharton said Montgomery County health officials are not overly concerned about future shortages because the spread of flu seems to be subsiding as the number of patients testing positive for the flu virus last week fell to 121 from 209 in the previous week, according to health department data.
“As of right now, the hospitalization numbers are staying pretty steady, and the overall number of flu-like illnesses and cases being reported through the hospitals have actually dropped during the past week,” he said.
A visitation service for Perry will be held from 2 to 4 p.m. and 6 to 8 p.m. today at the Frings and Bayliff Funeral Home in Tipp City. Funeral services are set for 10 a.m. Saturday at the funeral home.
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