State has first swine flu death

A Midlands child with serious health issues has become South Carolina's first swine flu fatality, health officials said Monday while cautioning residents not to panic.

"This was a child with a very serious underlying health condition that left them susceptible to opportunistic infections," said Thom Berry, spokesman for the state Department of Health and Environmental Control. "It's not something that people should panic about but a tragic example of how this particular strain of influenza can be deadly."

Most deaths from Novel H1N1, also called swine flu, around the country have involved people with other health conditions. Though most cases in the state have been mild, some have been more severe and some have required hospitalization, Berry said. But that happens with seasonal flu as well, he said.

"It's important to remember that seasonal influenza also kills thousands of people each year in this country," said Dr. Jerry Gibson, chief of DHEC's Bureau of Disease Control. Seasonal flu hospitalizes about 200,000 and kills 36,000 nationwide each year.

Berry said that if the situation rose to the level of a public health emergency, DHEC would give people more information, beyond what it's recommending now, to better protect themselves.

Among the steps currently recommended are frequent hand-washing, covering coughs and sneezes with a tissue and disposing of the tissue or coughing into the upper sleeve, staying away from others who are sick, eating properly, exercising regularly and getting plenty of rest, and getting the flu vaccine when it becomes available.

Around the state, there have been 522 cases of swine flu confirmed, including 61 new cases the week ending Aug. 22, according to DHEC. Some 7,983 cases and 522 deaths have been confirmed nationwide, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Symptoms of swine flu are similar to those of seasonal flu and include fever, dry cough, sore throat, body aches, headache, chills and fatigue, Gibson said. Some people also have reported diarrhea and vomiting, he said.

DHEC did not identify the Midlands child who died from the disease. But the father of 12-year-old John H. McCormick of Batesburg-Leesville confirmed that his son, who suffered from cerebral palsy and other lifelong medical problems, died Aug. 24 after contracting swine flu. Bobby McCormick said Monday his son had been in and out of the hospital in recent years suffering from bouts of pneumonia.

Also, two men in their 30s are in critical condition in a Georgetown County hospital with the disease. One of the men has underlying conditions that are contributing to the illness, according to a DHEC epidemiologist.