MARTINEZ, Calif. (KCBS) -- A 9-year-old girl who died last weekend had contracted the H1N1 strain of influenza, Contra Costa County health officials said Thursday.
The victim, Karen Perez of Concord, had also developed a secondary bacterial infection, according to lab results that confirmed the presence of the swine flu.
The tests were not conclusive that Perez died because of the new strain of influenza. Dr. Wendel Brunner, the Contra Costa Public Health Director, said further analysis would also determine whether the bacteria was related to the virus.
KCBS’ Chris Filippi reports
When Perez died on May 29, she had been out of school for more than seven days, which is the typical incubation period for the swine flu.
Brunner said there were no plans to close any county schools because of the child’s illness.
“The virus is widespread throughout the county and there’s really no point in closing schools. That’s not an effective strategy at this time.”
Brunner says testing was stopped several weeks ago once it was found that the virus was prevalent throughout the county.
“[Now] we only test a few of the cases, the more severe cases, or cases if we have a particular reason or need to identify the virus.”
KCBS' Rebecca Corral and Melissa Culross interview Dr. Brunner
Officials with the federal Centers for Disease Control said Thursday that there have been 11,468 probable and confirmed swine flu cases in the U.S., including 770 hospitalizations and 19 deaths.
(jro)
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