By Greg Grisolano

ggrisolano@joplinglobe.com

A 6-year-old Southeast Kansas child has died from swine flu, state health officials said Wednesday.

It is the second death in Kansas that has been linked to the H1N1 influenza virus.

A spokeswoman for the Kansas Department of Health and Environment said there were no details about where the child lived. The death was reported to the KDHE on Sept. 3. The illness was confirmed as H1N1 flu at the state laboratory on Aug. 25.

Health officials in Crawford and Labette counties said Wednesday that they were unable to confirm where the child lived, but that they believe the child did not live in either of their counties.

“I don’t know where the child was from,” said Janice Goedeke, director of the Crawford County Health Department. “I would have been contacted if the child was from Crawford County.”

A spokesman for the Cherokee County Health Department could not be reached for comment Wednesday night.

The state has confirmed cases of the virus in all three counties, as well as Bourbon, Neosho and Montgomery counties in Southeast Kansas. The virus has been confirmed in 53 counties in Kansas.

The KDHE said visits to health care providers and emergency departments for influenza have been increasing over the past few weeks in certain regions of the state.

In most of the cases, flu symptoms have been relatively mild. Hospitalization rates for H1N1 influenza have been similar to those of seasonal influenza.

Symptoms include fever higher than 100 degrees, body aches, coughing, sore throat, respiratory congestion and, in some cases, diarrhea and vomiting.

The department suggests that people who experience severe illness or who are at high risk for complications — including children younger than 5, adults 65 and older, pregnant women, and people with chronic medical conditions such as asthma, diabetes or heart disease — should contact their health care provider.

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