| THE FIRST DEATH CAUSED BY THE NEW FLU VIRUS IN ROMANIA 24/11/2009 |
| (2009-11-24) |
| Last updated: 2009-11-25 16:24 EET |
“The first Romanian who died of new flu was actually killed by the system“, headlines the newspaper ADEVARUL, after a first death caused by the new flu virus was confirmed in Romania on Monday. The wife of the victim, a 43 year old man from Siret, north-eastern Romania, told the press that “the ambulance rushing him to hospital had run out of oxygen and was not equipped with CPR equipment“. Finger pointed by the people, the health-care system was quick to respond. The official cause of the death was “respiratory failure”, following a cardiac arrest caused by complications of several chronic diseases he suffered from: obesity, diabetes and high blood pressure. That is why state secretary with the Romanian Health Ministry, Adrian Streinu Cercel warns that once contaminated with the new flu virus, people suffering from chronic diseases run the highest risks of developing complications.
“Everyone should be aware of the lethal potential of flu viruses. The fact that we have an operational health-care system, in spite of its malfunctions, allows us to diagnose patients. We want to do our best to further save as many lives as possible. The treatment is not always effective, because a large number of patients suffer from associated chronic diseases, too. In this case, the patient suffered from obesity, which is a major risk factor, not to mention high blood pressure and diabetes. All these fall into the category of diseases which seriously affect blood vessels , and implicitly involve a high risk of death.”
2,000 cases of contamination with the new flu virus have been reported at country level, the main outbreaks being registered in Bucharest and in the eastern regions of the country, along the border with Ukraine (where the virus killed some 400 people) and with the Republic of Moldova (where the virus is spreading at a fast pace).
The only efficient way of fighting the new flu is a vaccination campaign, doctor Streinu Cercel has stressed. As of this week, approximately one million doses of vaccine will be used to immunise people who are most exposed to the virus: medical staff, army employees, border police, students and high school pupils. As regards children, after avoiding to make public a date for the start of a vaccination campaign, the authorities estimate it will start in January 2010. The campaign is delayed because testing procedures are difficult and parents are worried about the potential side effects of the vaccine.
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2025-04-03
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