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DOH investigates death of 8-yr-old boy at SBUH
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The state Department of Health is investigating the unexpected death of an 8-year-old boy at Stony Brook University Hospital on Sunday, Oct. 11.
The boy — reportedly from Kings Park, although Claudia Hutton in the DOH Office of Public Relations in Albany would not confirm that or the boy's name — had been admitted to St. Catherine's of Siena Medical Center in Smithtown days before and transferred to the tertiary-level SBUH on Oct. 8. He was eventually removed from life support and died Sunday.
Reports published since the incident have implied a possible connection between the death and a flu shot the boy received the week before his death.
"He did not have flu," Hutton said. "He did not die as a reaction to the vaccine. Some sort of virus went through him," she speculated, since tests were not to be completed by DOH before the end of this week at the soonest. Hutton said the parents requested no autopsy be performed.
Hutton explained that an adverse reaction to a vaccine — in this case the boy received a seasonal flu vaccination, not an H1N1 shot — usually occurs "within hours if it happens at all," so the fact that the boy's hospitalization occurred five days later makes a connection highly unlikely.
Stony Brook Hospital would not comment on the case, citing privacy requirements, but did confirm the investigation. However the hospital did state: "… a review of the case, including medical records and interviews, indicates he did not contract seasonal flu, the new H1N1 flu, nor did he suffer a reaction to the vaccine." The statement went on: "We will continue to examine the medical record to see whether a precise cause of death can be determined. As medical professionals and as human beings, we grieve the loss of any child and offer condolences to the family."
The DOH reported that both St. Catherine's and SBUH have cooperated completely with the investigation, forwarding reports, medical records and fluid samples to Albany. She also said there has been no indication that either facility did anything wrong in the course of treating the boy. "Both hospitals in this case did what they were supposed to do," she said. Hutton added that, on average, 18 unexplained deaths among 8-year-olds occur in New York each year.
The health department spokeswoman took the opportunity to stress the importance of getting both a seasonal and H1N1 flu vaccination, especially for very young children and pregnant women. Hutton said there is "a one in eight chance of dying" in pregnant women who contract the H1N1 virus, and the "vaccine will protect the baby" as well as the mother.
"We want people to get vaccinated," Hutton said. She also offered a strong suggestion for how people can protect themselves from either flu. "Soap is the miracle drug for the flu," Hutton said, urging everyone to wash their hands often to prevent contracting or spreading the illness.
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