Health authorities confirmed on Friday that a 24-year-old male in southern Taiwan died after being infected by the influenza A(H1N1) virus.
Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Deputy Director-General Chou Jih-haw (周志浩) said the man’s death was the 45th caused by H1N1 since the virus began affecting Taiwan last year. Like all of the other victims, with one exception, the male victim was not vaccinated against the H1N1 flu.
Chou confirmed that the man’s 56-year-old father had also contracted the flu and is now being treated at a hospital in the Kaohsiung area after developing a fever and shortness of breath and coughing up blood.
The CDC said the son was rushed to the hospital on July 13 with a high fever. His illness quickly worsened and he died of pneumonia and multiple organ failure on Monday. The agency said the man had not suffered from any chronic diseases before catching the flu.
Meanwhile, CDC Director-General Chang Feng-yee (張峰義) warned that an H1N1 outbreak is expected this autumn and winter.
Noting that barely more than 20 percent of Taiwan’s population received the H1N1 vaccine last year, Chang warned those who were not vaccinated that they were at risk of contracting the potentially lethal flu virus.
Because 17 of the people who have died from the virus in Taiwan were in the 25-49 age group, the CDC is assessing the possibility of including people in this age group in the national anti-flu inoculation program this year, Chang said.
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