Five-year-old boy dies from flu after arriving at hospital in critical condition

A five-year-old child suffering from the flu arrived at Wolfson Medical Center in critical condition earlier today and died shortly after his arrival, the hospital says.

The child arrived at the hospital intubated and without a pulse. A spokesperson says hospital doctors “did not have the chance to diagnose and treat him.”

“We are at the beginning of the peak of the illness wave, and the expectation is that the burden will increase in the coming weeks. It is still not too late to get vaccinated and prevent severe illness,” says Prof. Yasmin Maor, head of Wolfson’s infectious diseases unit.

At Beilinson Hospital, four women, aged 22 to 50, are in the general intensive care unit in critical condition due to flu complications.

All four are sedated and ventilated.

The Health Ministry says the number of patients diagnosed with respiratory illnesses is on the rise, including 250 new cases of influenza and 191 new cases of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), a common illness that affects the lungs.

There is an increase in the percentage of visits to internal and pediatric emergency departments due to pneumonia but no significant change in the rate of pediatric emergency visits among infants up to two years old due to bronchiolitis. This common lung infection affects babies and children under two. It’s usually mild and can be treated at home, but can be serious. This condition occurs more often during the winter.

The Health Ministry urges individuals to get vaccinated against the flu and to practice good hygiene, as respiratory illnesses can spread easily.