Introduction to H Flu
Eight-year-old Liam Dahlberg stepped off the school bus with a headache one Thursday afternoon last spring. The following Saturday morning, he was in a coma with no brain activity. He was dead by Monday. His doctors said the northwest Indiana boy contracted an aggressive form of H flu, a rare bacterial infection. He died in a Chicago hospital despite being a healthy kid and vaccinated against the disease, his mom, Ashlee Dahlberg, told the Sun-Times.
What is H Flu?
H flu, also called haemophilus influenzae, is uncommon — each year about 200 cases are recorded in Illinois and roughly 150 are documented in Indiana, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Despite the name, H flu is a bacteria, not a virus like the flu. It can lead to pneumonia and meningitis. But it isn’t always fatal or life-threatening. Cases can be mild, usually presenting as an ear infection in kids or as a chest cold in adults, the CDC says.
How H Flu Spreads
While doctors can’t say for sure how Liam got sick, one way that the disease can spread is through the unvaccinated, who are more likely to be infected and spread the disease. Unlike Illinois, Indiana does not require the vaccine as a part of a student’s immunizations. The boy’s mom worries her son’s tragic case could become more common as vaccine skepticism rises and vaccination rates fall.
Importance of Vaccination
Before a vaccine was developed and made widely available in the late 1980s and early 1990s, haemophilus influenzae type b was the most common form of H flu. Roughly 20,000 kids, mostly ages 5 and younger, contracted H flu each year in the early 1980s, and about 1,000 died, according to the CDC. Those rates dropped dramatically after the vaccine was widespread. Type b is the only type of H flu with a vaccine. Other versions are rare but can also cause serious infections like meningitis.
Liam’s Story
Liam was a healthy boy who loved to play outside, ride his dirt bike and work with his hands, his mom said. He was a fierce protector of his baby sister, and he dreamed of one day owning his own landscaping company. He lived in Lowell, Indiana — a small town about 60 miles south of the Loop — with his parents and his two sisters. Liam had seasonal allergies, and was recently diagnosed with asthma and used an inhaler. Headaches weren’t unusual for him, especially given his allergies. When he came home with the headache on April 24, Ashlee Dahlberg gave him ibuprofen, and he felt well enough to play outside.
The Final Days
But a couple hours later, he came home screaming in pain, telling his mom his head “hurt real bad,” she said. He spiked a fever overnight and woke up early the next morning delirious and unable to keep his balance. They took him straight to the emergency room. Within two hours, his doctors in Lowell transferred him to University of Chicago Comer Children’s Hospital, fearing he had a severe brain infection. At Comer, he was put on more antibiotics and a lumbar puncture confirmed he had fulminant haemophilus influenzae. His doctors suspected he had type b. But a culture test of his spinal fluid could not officially determine the correct type, according to his medical records.
The Impact of Vaccine Skepticism
As anti-vaccine sentiment continues to grow, vaccines that never faced controversy are getting lumped in with the “myth and lore” that’s plagued other better-known effective and safe vaccines, said Dr. Ravi Jhaveri, the division head of pediatric infectious diseases at Lurie Children’s Hospital. “H flu has never been a controversial vaccine, the myth and lore has never been there,” Jhaveri said. “But this particularly highly effective vaccine gets caught up in the tidal wave of misinformation for all vaccines.” When anti-vaccine disinformation was more fringe, Jhaveri said, vaccination levels were higher, and there were fewer cases of vaccine preventable illnesses.
Conclusion
Liam’s tragic case highlights the importance of vaccination in preventing the spread of infectious diseases. His mom, Ashlee Dahlberg, pleads with other parents to make sure their children are vaccinated — not only to protect their own child but other kids like Liam. “This just shows how important vaccinations are,” she said. “What may be a slight cold for one is a hospital visit for another.”
FAQs
- Q: What is H flu?
A: H flu, also called haemophilus influenzae, is a rare bacterial infection that can lead to pneumonia and meningitis. - Q: How does H flu spread?
A: H flu can spread through the unvaccinated, who are more likely to be infected and spread the disease. - Q: Why is vaccination important?
A: Vaccination is important in preventing the spread of infectious diseases like H flu, and can help protect not only the individual but also others in the community. - Q: What can be done to prevent the spread of H flu?
A: Getting vaccinated against H flu, as well as practicing good hygiene and avoiding close contact with those who are infected, can help prevent the spread of the disease.
