Experts Warn Of H1N1’s Toll On Young People

Washington, D.C.—In Texas, Kristen Gibson’s healthy 5-year-old daughter, Catherine, came down with the H1N1 flu and never recovered.

Kristen Gibson, lost daughter to H1N1: “It never occurred to me that I would leave the hospital without my daughter.“

In suburban Chicago, it was a 14-year-old student at Naperville North High School.

Carol Dunne, parent: “It just breaks my heart. And, I’m so sorry for her family. And I can’t imagine…“

In a report by the American Medical Association, to be published next month, doctors are painting a frightening picture of how previously healthy young people are being fatally stricken with the swine flu. They write, critical illness…occurred rapidly after hospital admission….and was associated with severely low levels of oxygen in the blood, multi-system organ failure, a need for prolonged mechanical ventilation, and frequent use of rescue therapies.

Dr. Teresa Long, Columbus (OH) Public Health Commissioner: “Why children may be, and clearly are, at greater risk is because their immune systems have not had an opportunity to respond to this kind of virus before.“

The report also warns of the dangers of a lack of preparedness, suggesting ‘hospitals must develop explicit policies to equitably determine who will and will not receive life support, should absolute scarcity occur’.

A top U.S. health official says the risks from not getting the swine flu vaccine are greater than any potential risks associated with taking the vaccine.

Dr. Anne Schuchat, CDC (from: CNN/‘State of the Union’): “We are seeing this increase in disease, including deaths…and I think people should take advantage of the vaccine when it’s available to them.“