NEW ORLEANS — A Louisiana child died from the flu for the first time this season, Louisiana Department of Health officials said on Friday. The youth's death comes as the state leads the country in cases.
According to NOLA.com, Baton Rouge school officials reported earlier this month that a first-grader had died from the flu in a message to board members. Although the Louisiana Department of Health did not release any additional information about the child who died.
Doctors at Children's Hospital New Orleans said on top of the flu, other respiratory viruses have also been plaguing children, including RSV, COVID and influenza B.
"It's sort of the quadruple whammy," Physician-in-Chief Dr. Mark Kline told NOLA.com.
The flu season typically lasts through March. And doctors, like Kline, have said the best way to prevent severe illness is to get vaccinated.
Incidentally, the child vaccination rate in Louisiana this season has been 7% lower than the national average, with only 35% of kids under 17 vaccinated against the flu.