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H1N1 more serious than seasonal flu for children with sickle cell disease
NEWS IN BRIEF — Posted Dec. 14, 2009
The influenza A(H1N1) virus causes more life-threatening complications than seasonal flu in children with sickle cell disease, according to research from Johns Hopkins Children's Center presented in December at the annual meeting of the American Society of Hematology.
Researchers analyzed records of 118 children with sickle cell disease who were treated for any kind of influenza at the children's center from September 1993 to November 2009. Twenty-eight were infected with H1N1.
Researchers found that sickle cell patients infected with H1N1 were three times more likely than seasonal flu patients to develop acute chest syndrome, a leading cause of death among these patients. Children with H1N1 also were five times more likely to end up in intensive care and more likely to need a blood transfusion than were those with seasonal flu.
Note: This item originally appeared at http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/2009/12/14/prbf1214.htm.
