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Woman in 50s is NY's 2nd A(H1N1) flu death, US' 11th

(Agencies)
Updated: 2009-05-25 08:00

NEW YORK -- A woman died over the weekend of A(H1N1) flu, becoming the city's second victim and the nation's 11th.

The woman, who was in her 50s, had other health conditions, Department of Health and Mental Hygiene spokeswoman Jessica Scaperotti said. No other information on her case was disclosed Sunday.

Children hold placards as they take part in a "H1N1 flu" awareness rally in the southern Indian city of Hyderabad May 24, 2009. [Agencies]

Assistant public school principal Mitchell Wiener, who died May 17, was the city's first death from the virus. The 55-year-old had been sick for several days.

There were 280 confirmed cases of A(H1N1) flu in the city and 94 hospitalizations as of Sunday, Scaperotti said. The number of confirmed cases probably doesn't fully reflect the spread of the virus, given that health officials aren't testing everyone for the H1N1 strain.

"It's most likely that if you're sick with the flu, that you have the H1N1 virus," Scaperotti said.

Full coverage:  A（H1N1） Influenza Outbreak Related readings:  Kuwait: 18 flu infected US troops left  Russia confirms 1st H1N1 flu patient  HK reports 4th H1N1 flu infection  Mexico City ends swine flu alert, no cases in week  Mainland reports 10th suspected flu case

Those people with chronic health conditions such as diabetes and compromised immune systems who are suffering from flu-like symptoms should seek medical advice, Scaperotti said. Only those with more serious symptoms, such as shortness of breath, should go to emergency rooms, she said.

The health department recommended that physicians prescribe anti-flu drugs such as Tamiflu over the phone to patients with mild flu symptoms who have other health conditions.

Scaperotti said that as the virus spreads "we are going to see more increases of severe illness." She said that each year more than 1,000 people die of seasonal flu in the city.

The city's first outbreak of A(H1N1) flu occurred about a month ago, when more than 1,000 teenagers at a Catholic high school in Queens began falling ill following the return of several students from vacations in Mexico, where the virus was first detected.

The virus has coursed through the city's schools and even reached its jail system, where inmates' visiting hours have been limited and hand sanitizer passed around. On Thursday, correction officials said they would sanitize a 2,600-inmate jail on Rikers Island.

The World Health Organization, as of Friday, had tallied more than 12,000 A(H1N1) flu cases worldwide, with more than half of them in the United States. It counted at least 86 deaths, with 75 of those in Mexico.