A 31-year-old flu patient who gave birth prematurely on Friday was in critical condition yesterday, the Health Bureau (SSM) said in a statement.
The woman is suffering from influenza with pneumonia.
According to the statement, the woman has never had a flu shot in her life. She came down with a fever, cough and shortness of breath last Monday. She was given outpatient treatment by the University Hospital of the University of Science and Technology (MUST) and the private Kiang Wu Hospital last week.
Tests at Kiang Wu Hospital diagnosed her with Type A influenza, and she was prescribed Tamiflu.
She went into labour on Friday, giving birth to a healthy boy after 34 weeks of pregnancy.
The patient suffered respiratory failure on Saturday night, requiring assisted ventilation. The woman’s two-year-old daughter came down with fever and cough on January 10 but has meanwhile recovered. Her other family members have not shown any similar symptoms, according to the statement.
The statement pointed out that since last September 42 cases of flu associated with pneumonia and other complications have been recorded by the Health Bureau, among them one fatal case, an 86-year-old man.
Among the 42 serious cases, 80 percent were not vaccinated against influenza. Yesterday, 21 of the patients were still hospitalised.
Meanwhile, the Health Bureau also announced yesterday in a flu outbreak in a senior citizens home, Asilo Betânia, in Avenida do Conselheiro Borja last week.
A total of 12 elderly residents of the home, aged between 61 and 91, have come down with flu symptoms such as fever, cough and respiratory infection, according to the statement.
All of them had been vaccinated against the 2018-2019 seasonal flu. By the time of the release of the statement, none of them had required hospitalisation.
