CLEVELAND: Four Ohio children have died of flu-related illnesses this month as the number of cases seems to be peaking, officials said Monday.
Two of the deaths were from Columbiana County in eastern Ohio, including a 6-year-old boy from Salem and a 7-year-old boy from East Liverpool, who died on Saturday. Columbiana County Health Commissioner Wes Vins said Monday that nothing has been found to connect their deaths.
The other deaths were a 7-year-old girl in Fulton County in northwest Ohio and a 6-year-old girl in Cuyahoga County. One child died during the previous flu season, which spans from October to May, and six died during that same period between 2014 and 2015.
Epidemiologist Sietske de Fijter with the Ohio Department of Health, said deaths of children from the flu are unfortunate, but not unusual.
Around 20 children in the U.S. have died during the current flu season, which does not appear to be any more severe than past ones. Through Friday, nearly 2,100 people statewide had been hospitalized for the flu, compared with 3,400 hospitalizations in the 2015-2016 flu season and nearly 9,400 in 2014-2015.
Vins said the number of hospitalizations is higher in Columbiana County this season, but added, “We’re not at a point where we consider this to be an outbreak.”
Vins and Fijter cautioned people to wash their hands frequently, to stay home from work or school if they are feeling ill and to see a doctor if they think they have the flu. They also said there is a plentiful supply of flu vaccine available throughout Ohio and urged anyone who has not gotten the vaccine to do so.