{"id":12441,"date":"2025-01-27T12:25:08","date_gmt":"2025-01-27T17:25:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/news\/?page_id=12441"},"modified":"2025-01-27T12:29:01","modified_gmt":"2025-01-27T17:29:01","slug":"virginia-department-of-health-reports-the-first-two-pediatric-flu-deaths","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/news\/public-relations-contacts\/archived-news-releases\/2025-news-releases\/virginia-department-of-health-reports-the-first-two-pediatric-flu-deaths\/","title":{"rendered":"Virginia Department of Health Reports the First Two Pediatric Flu Deaths"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE \u2013 <\/strong>January 27, 2025<strong><br \/>\n<\/strong><strong>Media Contact:\u00a0 <\/strong>Brookie Crawford, <a href=\"mailto:brookie.crawford@vdh.virginia.gov\">brookie.crawford@vdh.virginia.gov<\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>Virginia Department of Health Reports the First Two Pediatric Flu Deaths<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>RICHMOND, Va.<\/strong> \u2013 Regrettably, the Virginia Department of Health (VDH) is reporting two influenza-associated pediatric deaths which are the first reports for the 2024\u201325 influenza (flu) season in Virginia. One death occurred in a young school-aged child (5\u201312 years old) in Virginia\u2019s Eastern Region and one in a teenage child (13\u201317 years old) in the Central Region of Virginia. To protect the family\u2019s privacy, VDH will not provide any additional information.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWith a heavy heart, the Virginia Department of Health mourns the loss of two young lives. Our sympathies go out to the families during this difficult time,\u201d said <strong>State Health Commissioner Karen Shelton, MD<\/strong>. \u201cThese losses are a sad reminder that while flu is common, it can be associated with serious illness and even death.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>VDH recommends the following tips to prevent the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/epidemiology\/influenza-flu-in-virginia\/\">flu<\/a>:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Most individuals aged six months and older should receive an annual flu vaccine. Consult your healthcare provider as needed.<\/li>\n<li>Wash your hands often with soap and water or use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer.<\/li>\n<li>Cover coughs or sneezes with a tissue or the inside of your elbow rather than your open hand.<\/li>\n<li>Stay at home <a href=\"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/epidemiology\/respiratory-diseases-in-virginia\/precautions-when-sick\/\">when you feel sick<\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>People at higher <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cdc.gov\/flu\/highrisk\/index.htm\">risk for flu complications<\/a> should seek medical care when symptoms begin to see if <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cdc.gov\/flu\/treatment\/index.html\">antiviral treatment<\/a> is recommended. Treatment works best when started within two days after symptoms begin. Contact a healthcare provider if symptoms become severe.<\/p>\n<p>As of January 18, the level of respiratory illnesses is <a href=\"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/epidemiology\/respiratory-diseases-in-virginia\/data\">moderate in Virginia<\/a>. Virginia reported 17.4% (13,986 visits) of all emergency department (ED) visits were for respiratory illnesses. Seasonal flu activity is elevated. Children account for the largest number of ED visits for flu.<\/p>\n<p>Virginia vaccination coverage for the flu remains low for children and adults. Only 30% of eligible Virginians reported receiving a flu vaccine this season. Vaccines can help protect people from the most serious health effects of flu viruses. A <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cdc.gov\/flu\/whats-new\/flu-summary-addendum-2023-2024.html\">recent study<\/a> estimated that during the 2023\u201324 season, the flu vaccination prevented:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>8 million flu-related illnesses,<\/li>\n<li>8 million flu-related medical visits,<\/li>\n<li>120,000 flu-related hospitalizations, and<\/li>\n<li>7,900 flu-related deaths.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>With flu activity elevated in Virginia, now is a good time to get a flu vaccine if you have not already.<\/p>\n<p>Visit <a href=\"https:\/\/vaccinate.virginia.gov\/\">vaccinate.virginia.gov<\/a> to find a location to get your flu vaccine. Talk to a healthcare provider for recommended vaccines for you and your family.\u00a0 For additional questions about the flu or the flu vaccine, contact VDH\u2019s Call Center at 877-829-4682 (Option 2), The VDH Call Center is available Monday\u2013Friday (except holidays) from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.<\/p>\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/epidemiology\/respiratory-diseases-in-virginia\/data\/\">VDH Respiratory Illness dashboard<\/a> will be next updated January 28.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"># # #<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE \u2013 January 27, 2025 Media Contact:\u00a0 Brookie Crawford, brookie.crawford@vdh.virginia.gov Virginia Department of Health Reports the First Two Pediatric Flu Deaths RICHMOND, Va. \u2013 Regrettably, the Virginia Department of Health (VDH) is reporting two influenza-associated pediatric deaths which are the first reports for the 2024\u201325 influenza (flu) season in Virginia. One death occurred [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":444,"featured_media":0,"parent":12290,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"tags":[29,89,456],"class_list":["post-12441","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry","tag-flu","tag-influenza","tag-pediatric-death"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Virginia Department of Health Reports the First Two Pediatric Flu Deaths - Newsroom<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/news\/public-relations-contacts\/archived-news-releases\/2025-news-releases\/virginia-department-of-health-reports-the-first-two-pediatric-flu-deaths\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Virginia Department of Health Reports the First Two Pediatric Flu Deaths - Newsroom\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE \u2013 January 27, 2025 Media Contact:\u00a0 Brookie Crawford, brookie.crawford@vdh.virginia.gov Virginia Department of Health Reports the First Two Pediatric Flu Deaths RICHMOND, Va. \u2013 Regrettably, the Virginia Department of Health (VDH) is reporting two influenza-associated pediatric deaths which are the first reports for the 2024\u201325 influenza (flu) season in Virginia. 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