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Source: http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article...from-swine-flu
Swine flu linked to death of Graton teen
By MARTIN ESPINOZA
THE PRESS DEMOCRAT
Published: Friday, August 28, 2009 at 6:36 p.m.
Last Modified: Friday, August 28, 2009 at 6:36 p.m.
A 14-year-old El Molino High School student from Graton became the sixth Sonoma County resident to die after becoming ill with swine flu.
The boy, Victor Gene Delgado, came down with severe flu symptoms last week and died at Children's Hospital in Oakland on Tuesday after earlier receiving treatment at Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital, his family said.
Sonoma County public health officials informed his father by phone Friday evening that he had tested positive for H1N1 influenza, the official name of the virus.
Health officials, who would not confirm the identity of the boy, citing their privacy policy, issued a statement saying an adolescent had died earlier this week from complications associated with the flu following a brief hospitalization. The statement said the child had a ?pre-existing medical condition that increased the risk for serious illness from influenza.?
Victor's mother, Yvonne Delgado, said that her son had open-heart surgery when he was 3 days old. But she said that his health ever since had been excellent to the point that his doctor had cleared him to play football last year.
Victor, his mother and two older sisters became ill a week ago Friday. He stayed home from school and they all went to Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital about dinnertime, the family said. His father, a construction contractor, had had flu-like symptoms for about a week prior to that.
They were treated Friday night in the emergency department, given medications for their conditions and sent home, Yvonne Delgado said.
Standing on the porch of their home off Graton Road, the family recalled the severity of their symptoms, conditions they said they had never felt before.
?I had a 103-degree fever,? said Victor's 17-year-old sister, Maureen Delgado. ?I felt like my head was going to explode.?
Maureen said she felt like there was something blocking her ?air hole, where you can't breathe.?
The family spent most of Saturday recovering from their illness. Victor's condition, however, worsened. By midnight, the boy's breathing had become strained and it became clear that something was terribly wrong.
?Victor was sleeping, but we were giving him Popsicles, water, Jell-O,? Yvonne Delgado said. ?When me and my daughters were getting ready to go to bed, we were checking up on him. Before we went to bed, before midnight, that's when I heard his breathing. It got worse, it sounded like a coffee percolator.?
His father, Victor Gene Delgado Sr., who had served in the Air Force in the late 1980s and early 1990s, quickly pulled his son out of bed and gave him CPR. The family called 911 and the Graton fire department responded immediately.
?They took about 30 minutes to try to get some kind of pulse or heartbeat, and when they did ? they got a little one ? they loaded him into the ambulance,? Yvonne Delgado said.
Victor then was taken for a second time to Memorial.
Yvonne Delgado said her son was flown to Children's Hospital in Oakland on Sunday. She said a doctor told her Monday that Victor was brain dead and he was disconnected from life support Tuesday.
Memorial Hospital spokesman Katy Hillenmeyer said Friday night that she had no information on Victor's treatment at the hospital.
The family described Victor as an outgoing boy who loved skateboarding, bike riding and sports, especially soccer. He had dreams of becoming a scientist, his father said.
?He said he wanted to become a zoologist, he always hunted lizards, snakes and black widows,? his father said. ?He let them all go at the end. He loved animals. He loved life.?
There have been six reported deaths in Sonoma County related to H1N1 and there have been 36 hospitalizations and many more reports of flu symptoms, county officials said.
?Most influenza-like illnesses at this time can be assumed to be H1N1,? the county statement said.
News of an unidentified student's death at Children's Hospital was e-mailed by El Molino Principal Doria Trombetta to school personnel Friday morning, said an El Molino teacher who requested anonymity.
The e-mail, however, did not give details of the cause, according to the teacher.
Trombetta did not return a phone call late Friday afternoon seeking comment.
The school's Web site carried a statement saying that any public health concerns affecting the school would be addressed by the county's deputy public health officer.
Carl Wong, the county schools chief, said he could neither confirm nor deny the identity of the boy, nor where he went to school.
?The death of any student is a tragedy,? Wong said, adding, ?I'm not allowed to speak to you about student matters.? Such questions should be answered by the Sonoma County Public Health Department, he said.
The county's deputy public health officer, Mark Netherda, said Friday evening he had no comment beyond the department's statement and would not discuss the school or the student's identity.
You can reach Staff Writer Martin Espinoza at 521-5213
or martin.espinoza@
pressdemocrat.com.
Swine flu linked to death of Graton teen
By MARTIN ESPINOZA
THE PRESS DEMOCRAT
Published: Friday, August 28, 2009 at 6:36 p.m.
Last Modified: Friday, August 28, 2009 at 6:36 p.m.
A 14-year-old El Molino High School student from Graton became the sixth Sonoma County resident to die after becoming ill with swine flu.
The boy, Victor Gene Delgado, came down with severe flu symptoms last week and died at Children's Hospital in Oakland on Tuesday after earlier receiving treatment at Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital, his family said.
Sonoma County public health officials informed his father by phone Friday evening that he had tested positive for H1N1 influenza, the official name of the virus.
Health officials, who would not confirm the identity of the boy, citing their privacy policy, issued a statement saying an adolescent had died earlier this week from complications associated with the flu following a brief hospitalization. The statement said the child had a ?pre-existing medical condition that increased the risk for serious illness from influenza.?
Victor's mother, Yvonne Delgado, said that her son had open-heart surgery when he was 3 days old. But she said that his health ever since had been excellent to the point that his doctor had cleared him to play football last year.
Victor, his mother and two older sisters became ill a week ago Friday. He stayed home from school and they all went to Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital about dinnertime, the family said. His father, a construction contractor, had had flu-like symptoms for about a week prior to that.
They were treated Friday night in the emergency department, given medications for their conditions and sent home, Yvonne Delgado said.
Standing on the porch of their home off Graton Road, the family recalled the severity of their symptoms, conditions they said they had never felt before.
?I had a 103-degree fever,? said Victor's 17-year-old sister, Maureen Delgado. ?I felt like my head was going to explode.?
Maureen said she felt like there was something blocking her ?air hole, where you can't breathe.?
The family spent most of Saturday recovering from their illness. Victor's condition, however, worsened. By midnight, the boy's breathing had become strained and it became clear that something was terribly wrong.
?Victor was sleeping, but we were giving him Popsicles, water, Jell-O,? Yvonne Delgado said. ?When me and my daughters were getting ready to go to bed, we were checking up on him. Before we went to bed, before midnight, that's when I heard his breathing. It got worse, it sounded like a coffee percolator.?
His father, Victor Gene Delgado Sr., who had served in the Air Force in the late 1980s and early 1990s, quickly pulled his son out of bed and gave him CPR. The family called 911 and the Graton fire department responded immediately.
?They took about 30 minutes to try to get some kind of pulse or heartbeat, and when they did ? they got a little one ? they loaded him into the ambulance,? Yvonne Delgado said.
Victor then was taken for a second time to Memorial.
Yvonne Delgado said her son was flown to Children's Hospital in Oakland on Sunday. She said a doctor told her Monday that Victor was brain dead and he was disconnected from life support Tuesday.
Memorial Hospital spokesman Katy Hillenmeyer said Friday night that she had no information on Victor's treatment at the hospital.
The family described Victor as an outgoing boy who loved skateboarding, bike riding and sports, especially soccer. He had dreams of becoming a scientist, his father said.
?He said he wanted to become a zoologist, he always hunted lizards, snakes and black widows,? his father said. ?He let them all go at the end. He loved animals. He loved life.?
There have been six reported deaths in Sonoma County related to H1N1 and there have been 36 hospitalizations and many more reports of flu symptoms, county officials said.
?Most influenza-like illnesses at this time can be assumed to be H1N1,? the county statement said.
News of an unidentified student's death at Children's Hospital was e-mailed by El Molino Principal Doria Trombetta to school personnel Friday morning, said an El Molino teacher who requested anonymity.
The e-mail, however, did not give details of the cause, according to the teacher.
Trombetta did not return a phone call late Friday afternoon seeking comment.
The school's Web site carried a statement saying that any public health concerns affecting the school would be addressed by the county's deputy public health officer.
Carl Wong, the county schools chief, said he could neither confirm nor deny the identity of the boy, nor where he went to school.
?The death of any student is a tragedy,? Wong said, adding, ?I'm not allowed to speak to you about student matters.? Such questions should be answered by the Sonoma County Public Health Department, he said.
The county's deputy public health officer, Mark Netherda, said Friday evening he had no comment beyond the department's statement and would not discuss the school or the student's identity.
You can reach Staff Writer Martin Espinoza at 521-5213
or martin.espinoza@
pressdemocrat.com.
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