13-year-old with no underlying conditions dies of flu in Safed, as cases rise

A 13-year-old boy from the city of Arraba in northern Israel died on Thursday from apparent complications of the flu, amid a particularly severe season of the virus that has already caused the deaths of several children in recent weeks.

According to a statement from Ziv Medical Center in Safed, where the boy was hospitalized, the teen had no underlying conditions, and initially showed only minor symptoms before developing what appeared to be pneumonia.

When his condition worsened at home on Thursday, he was taken to the hospital where he was assessed to be in critical condition, and was sedated and intubated.

“Unfortunately, despite the intensive treatment and efforts to save him, the boy passed away a short time after his arrival,” the hospital said.

This year has seen a significant rise in morbidity among flu cases, the highest since 2012, according to Health Ministry data.

The surge is seen across all age groups, and particularly among those aged 2-18, prompting calls by public health experts that everybody, and particularly those who are especially vulnerable, go to receive a seasonal flu vaccine.

Health authorities have emphasized that the most of the severe cases have been among the unvaccinated.

So far this month, a 5-year-old boy from Bat Yam and a 5-year-old girl in Kfar Saba have died from the flu, as has a 40-year-old woman in Beersheba. In December, a 13-year-old girl from Elad and an 18-year-old man from Jerusalem also died from the virus.

From the start of this season through last week, some 2,057 patients in Israel have been hospitalized due to the flu, across 13 hospitals, according to the Israel Center for Disease Control. Of them, 65 were pregnant women, 1,372 were other adults, and 620 were children.

There has also been a smaller rise in morbidity among coronavirus cases.