Doctors' offices filled amid children's unexplained deaths

The Virginian-Pilot ^ | Feb.22,2003 | ELIZABETH SIMPSON AND LIZ SZABO

[republicangel]

Pediatric offices and emergency rooms in Hampton Roads were jammed Friday with parents anxious to make sure their children's fevers and runny noses weren't life-threatening, as health investigators continued to study the unexplained deaths of five children in five days. ``I took off work to bring my daughter in,'' said Mashiah Mitchell, who brought his 4-year-old daughter, Asha, to Renaissance Pediatrics in Chesapeake because she had a fever. ``I got alarmed when I heard the news about the children dying.''

The fears were triggered by an investigation launched Thursday by the Virginia Department of Health into the deaths of four local children and one from Richmond who previously had been fairly healthy.

Investigators from the national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have joined the inquiry. State health investigators were also in touch Friday with officials in Michigan, where there were seven unexplained deaths of children with flulike symptoms earlier this year.

[republicangel]

This has been really scaring us around here for a few days.

[exnavy]

We've had a similar number of young children die of "flu like" simptons here in west Michigan lately.

[dubyagee]

I am very nervous. My three year old has flu-like symptoms right now. I'm in NC.

[republicangel]

it has everyone on edge. What can you do, since the doctors don't even know what is going on?
I'm worried about the children around here, too.

[republicangel]

the rest of the article mentions the unexplained deaths in Michigan, too.
Something that is not mentioned in the article, but was on local tv news: 3 of the 5 children here in Virginia were military dependents.

[jellybean]

Why is it only affecting young children? If it was some kind of chemical attack you would think it would also affect the elderly and affirm. What is the normal death rate from the flu?

[JudyB1938]

It's been scaring me, too, for all of you.

I pray that Jesus surround your children with Angels of Protection. Amen.

[Paulie]

bump

[republicangel]

the article mentions 5 (children) per year in this state. But never within 5 days.

[mommadooo3]

Wonder if there's some 'outside connecting' thread....like booster shots/baby shots...meds they all have had...

[tort_feasor]

Hi I'm from suburban Philadelphia. My Step Daughter has bad flu. Doctor called it the Hatboro plague. We live very close to Willow Grove Naval Air Station. No deaths in this area that I know of. Keep safe

[jellybean]

I've done some checking...here are some links:

Mortality Associated With Influenza and Respiratory Syncytial Virus in the United States

Flu deadlier than thought: U.S. study

Misconceptions about the flu

And from this link:

Third West Michigan child dies of flu complications. Two-year-old Jack Williams of Newaygo County died on Friday. We learned yesterday of two others: Billy Joe Green (age 16), an East Kentwood sophomore, who died on Saturday; and Ashley Racine (age 11) of Hastings last Wednesday. Four other children have died in eastern Michigan, bringing the state total to seven. The deaths were not from influenza virus, but from secondary bacteria infections like meningitis and pneumonia. Watch your kids if they get the flu, especially in the period after the worst symptoms fade. When they seem to be recovering is when theyÕre weakest, and other infections set in. Symptoms to make you call the doctor again:

• drastic behavior change.
• very stiff neck.
• breathing problems.
• sudden high fever.
• severe headache.

Seven child deaths from flu complications is more than usual, but not cause for alarm. Flu complications are the third leading cause of death for people over 65, and children are the second-most-susceptible group. In the U.S., anywhere from 35,000 to 70,000 people die each year from flu complications.

[FITZ]

who previously had been fairly healthy.

I wonder what they mean by "fairly healthy" and what is that flu like for kids who were very healthy? We had some kind of flu here but maybe it's not the same one and a couple of my kids had it for a couple days.

[exnavy]

My "baby" is 10 yr old, still I'm watching with interest.

[Tunehead54]

Bump for the good health and safety of all our angels.

---

[aristeides]

1918 Spanish Flu also exhibited unusually high mortality among the young (up to young adults in that case.) The speculation is that they had the weakest resistance, because they had never been exposed to similar strains of flu.

[sweetliberty]

The article says there is no common medication. I would assume that would include shots.

Ping.

[happymom]

My 8-year-old daughter has been home from school all week with the flu, and the proncipal said it's really going through the school too. Still, they were bothering us after 2 days to get her back to class. I just picked up her work for the week and we have been doing it here so she can rest up. I think trying to rush kids back to school is the worst thing you can do, even after the symptoms are gone, they need a couple of days to finish recovering.

[mommadooo3]

It makes NO sense.

[Mo1]

The article says there is no common medication. I would assume that would include shots

Most shots are now given to the kids before they're 3 .. also here in PA your child has to have all shot before starting school

There was a bad stomache virus that my kids got last weekend .. low grade fever and vomiting .. they were pretty much out of it and slept all day. After 24 hours they were ok and begging to go play in the snow

[Mo1]

I also remember Drudge had a report/article a few months back stating that this years flu season could be much more serious then they orginially thought it would be

A few years back there was a real bad flu season and ALOT folks around here .. Including myself landed in the hospital.

[mabelkitty]

Detroit has a "peaceful religion nest", so the deaths in Michigan raised my alert level.

[exnavy]

I prefer to think of Detroit as, "a target rich environment".

[GWfan]

Reading this, one question come to mind. Were these kids allowed to stay home while they were sick?

It seems to me that many, many parents still ship their kids off to school or day care while the kids are contagious, thus perpetuating the illnesses. A lot of times this is so the parents don't have to miss work.

In my neck of the woods, there are little-mentioned out breaks of meningitis almost every year. This year, scarlet fever has made a come back in two nearby towns. Scarlet fever is caused by strep A and can turn into rheumatic fever or worse if untreated. Late last year it was whooping cough showing up. My point is, that these are all naturally occurring.

[republicangel]

According to news reports, yes they were at home sick. one child was even a doctor's daughter. Another not mentioned in this story is a little boy in N. Carolina. He was in the hospital when he died and they don't know what he died from either. He was getting better and suddenly took a turn for the worse and his parents rushed him to the hospital and he died the next day.

[Lion's Cub]

Thanks for the flag.

I owe the CDC an apology I guess. I hadn't heard that they were investigating, and I just posted a rant about it on another thread. Better go back and eat some crow :)