Sixth Death From Influenza A Confirmed
By Bae Ji-sook
Staff Reporter
A 67-year-old man infected with Influenza A (H1N1) died Sunday, raising death from the virus to six.
The man died of multiple organ failure, a possible complication from the influenza virus, according to the Ministry for Health, Welfare and Family Affairs.
He had not been abroad, but had suffered from chronic liver failure, which is presumed to have affected the death directly.
The man suffered from cough since Aug. 20, and was brought to a hospital in metropolitan area four days later.
He was given antiviral drug Tamiflu on Aug. 26 and was confirmed with the infection on the following day, but died Sunday around 1 p.m.
Korea had its first patient reported in May and the first death on Aug. 15.
The number of patients is expected to be around 7,000, where most of them had recovered. Six are hospitalized for intensive care.
The government said it will vaccinate around 10 million people, about 20 percent of the country's population, by the end of the year.