Defcon flu: Detroit school closes after student dies of suspected flu – as officials investigate ‘unusually high number’ of cases
A Detroit elementary school has been temporarily closed after a preschooler died with flu-like symptoms.
The Detroit Public Schools Community District announced that the Marcus Garvey Academy will undergo a thorough cleanup while remaining closed until Monday as health officials investigate “unusually high rates of flu-like symptoms, including student fever and vomiting.”
The health department has not confirmed the cause of the deadly disease, but parents of young children said should monitor them for symptoms including fever, headache, lethargy, nausea/vomiting and abdominal pain.
Seasonal flu usually lasts from fall to about February, but it’s not unheard of for the virus to linger into the warmer season.
Detroit health officials have not yet confirmed that the death was caused by flu. While the flu can certainly be deadly, especially for people with compromised immune systems, deaths are not very common
The school district saidTragically, one of our Marcus Garvey preschoolers passed away last week. At this time, the coroner has not determined the cause of death.”
Parents of children ages four to seven should remain particularly vigilant, the health department advised.
Childhood illness is nothing new, and most parents expect their children to pick up some pathogen from a classmate and bring it home.
And while the flu can certainly be deadly, especially for people with compromised immune systems, deaths are not very common.
She typical maximum around 200and the vast majority of childhood flu deaths — about 80 percent — occur in children who have not received a flu shot.
The school district and health officials are tight-lipped about the identity of the deceased child, whose name, age and underlying health remain a mystery.
But the former’s statement that it experienced an unusually high number of flu-like illnesses “this week” after a preschooler died last week suggests the problem has been brewing for at least a week.
Emergency department visits due to flu symptoms in Wayne County, where Detroit is located, were much lower this year than what might normally be expected.
Still, visits increased from late March to early April, according to the county’s most recent flu surveillance report.
Hospitalizations due to flu have also risen in recent weeks, although still well below the province’s five-year average.
Dr. Kevin Dazy, a pediatrician at Michigan Children’s Hospital told a Fox News affiliate: “You can really see flu any time of the year. I don’t think it’s necessarily surprising, but it reminds us to wash our hands, to be careful about reporting any symptoms children have so it doesn’t spread quickly from child to child.”