BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Louisiana’s health department says the state’s first death from swine flu is that of a 21-year-old woman from the greater New Orleans area.
Department of Health and Hospitals spokeswoman Lauren Mendes says the woman died Wednesday of complications from the H1N1 virus.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention say more than 6,500 people have been hospitalized because of illnesses from the virus, and 436 have died.
Louisiana’s health department says 346 cases of H1N1 have been confirmed in the state since the virus emerged in the spring.
Since the virus is so widespread, the CDC has said doctors should check for the H1N1 virus only if someone is admitted to the hospital with a flu-like illness.—-Contact The Daily Reveille news staff at [email protected]