By ALEX COSTELLO
That's what happened to Richard Kanowitz, an Oceanside native and now the president of Families Fighting Flu, a nonprofit organization that tries to raise awareness of influenza.
"We just didn't know how serious influenza was," said Kanowitz, who lost his four-year-old daughter to the flu in 2004. "Amanda was perfectly healthy. The only thing she didn't have was a vaccine that year." Kanowitz's daughter Amanda started feeling sick on a Friday night, by Sunday night, according to Kanowitz, she was doing horribly.
"And Monday morning we found her in her bed," he said. "So over the course of a weekend, we lost our healthy, 4-year-old child to influenza."
Amanda Kanowitz was one of many children to die of influenza in 2004, but her death came before the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) started tracking pediatric deaths from influenza.
But Amanda's death became the inspiration for Kanowitz, as well as other parents, to form Families Fighting Flu. They managed to get the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) to change their recommendation for the ages children should receive a flu shot. In 2004, the recommendation was for children between 6 months and 23 months to receive the shot. Now, the ACIP says that everyone more than six months old should receive a flu shot each year.
While the 2008-09 flu season has been relatively mild so far (South Nassau Communities Hospital had seen less than 20 cases as of mid-February), cases have begun to increase, which is normally because February is the peak of flu season. And even though the season is winding down, it is still possible to get sick. Parents who are concerned about their children catching the flu can still get them a flu shot from their healthcare provider. It's also important to vaccinate children every year because it is hard to predict how serious a flu season can be before it begins.
"They had the flu of 1918, which was devastating. Millions of Americans died from it," said Dr. Richard Lippman, a community pediatrician affiliated with SNHC. "So you never know when that's going to happen, which is why I am a firm believer in vaccinating. I try to recommend that most of my patients should be vaccinated."
The elderly are also very susceptible to influenza, so anyone who cares for, lives with, or even visits elderly people should also be vaccinated so they don't transfer the virus.
"It hits the young and the old the hardest," Lippman said. "And children with any illnesses, especially, are at risk." Lippman cited asthma and diabetes as chronic illnesses that could make children more susceptible.
In recent years, the flu has been hitting children even harder. Since the CDC began tracking pediatric deaths from the flu during the 2004-05 flu season, the numbers have steadily increased. There were 39 deaths nationwide in the 2004-05 season, compared with 83 in the 2007-08 flu season.
"I think once a disease becomes reportable, more people are aware and look for the specific cause of death," said Dr. Abby Greenberg, director of the Nassau County Center for Public Health. "So that would account for others that may not have been investigated as thoroughly or confirmed by culture."
However, because of the milder flu this season, pediatric deaths have, so far, been low. There have been only six pediatric deaths from influenza so far this season, one of which, a 10-year-old boy from Levittown, was the first pediatric death from influenza in Nassau County since the CDC began tracking statistics in 2004. His death was followed on March 1 by a 9-year-old boy from the Five Towns. And even though this seems to be a milder flu season than in previous years, it is still important to remember that influenza is a deadly disease and that children need to protect themselves and get vaccinated every year.
"Parents say to me, 'Oh, you can't get sick from chicken pox. I had it when I was a kid and I'm fine,'" Lippman said. "But people die every year from chicken pox. It's dangerous, and the flu is even more dangerous."
Comments about this story? ACostello@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 207.
