TRENTON — The New Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services Friday, June 19 announced a fourth death of a New Jersey resident with novel H1N1 influenza.
The individual was a 36-year old Union County male, who died June 3 in Trinitas Regional Medical Center. He was hospitalized on June 1 with cough and fever. He had underlying medical conditions.
The state lab confirmed today that the individual had H1N1 influenza.
“Our condolences go out to this individual’s family during this very difficult time,” said Health and Senior Services Commissioner Heather Howard. “We continue to stress the seriousness of influenza – an illness that can unfortunately lead to death. The Department emphasizes that all New Jersey residents should remain vigilant and take proper precautions to protect themselves and their families.”
To date, New Jersey has 465 confirmed cases of H1N1 influenza in 19 counties, all but Cape May and Salem. There are also 248 probable cases pending confirmatory testing in the state lab.
Nationally, there are 21,449 confirmed and probable cases in 50 states. There have been 180 deaths worldwide, including 87 deaths in the United States.
Approximately 88 countries worldwide have confirmed cases of H1N1 influenza.
Commissioner Howard continues to urge all New Jersey residents to take preventive measures to avoid getting sick. These include:
• Washing your hands frequently and thoroughly
• Covering coughs and sneezes
• Staying home from work or school if you are sick
The symptoms of H1N1 influenza are similar to the symptoms of seasonal flu and include fever, cough, sore throat, body aches, headache, chills and fatigue. Some people have reported diarrhea and vomiting. Severe illness (pneumonia and respiratory failure) and deaths have been associated with H1N1 influenza, especially in Mexico for reasons that are not known. Like seasonal flu, H1N1 influenza might cause a worsening of underlying chronic medical conditions.
For more information on H1N1 Influenza, visit www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu/ or www.nj.gov/health.
