Indian Australian Girl died

Indian Australian girl Vanika Idnani died in her parents’ bed just three days before her forth birthday.  Vanika’s father said when he picked up his daughter from day care at Ryde two days before her death “she was so happy and alert and full of life. I remember she reminded me, ‘Papa we forgot my water bottle ‘ “

“ Her not being here three days later. It is something we could never have imagined” he said. Vanika died with influenza on Saturday 29 July 2017. So far in 2017 total 3 children has died of influenza related illness in NSW.

On Friday July 28 Vanika had a fever and complained a joint pain and tummy ache. She vomited twice on that day. Her mother took Vanika to see GP, who took a throat swab. On Saturday Vanika feel asleep with her father next to him.

“I woke up in the night and I suddenly realised she was not moving or breathing … I tried to move her but her hands were like stone,” Mr Idnani said.

It took another day before her parents discovered she had influenza when they received the pathology results from her throat swab.

“We have so many questions … we don’t know the complete picture,” Mr Idnani.

Her case has been referred to the coroner.

Vanika’s parents hope her case will serve as a warning to other families that even healthy children can be severely affected by the flu.

“We want there to be some awareness that these things could happen to anyone,” he said.

An eight years old Victorian girl has died on September 15 while a Victorian mother remained in induced coma six weeks after she gave birth to a boy on August 28.

The infectious disease is the most common cause of hospitalisation among vaccine-preventable diseases, and killed more children in Australia than any other such disease between 2005-2014, followed by meningococcal, a NSW Ombudsman report found. Children between zero and four years old are most at risk.

“The majority of flu deaths in children are before they get to school age,” said Professor Booy, Head of Clinical Research at the National Centre for Immunisation Research and Surveillance in Australia.

Often these children died of a secondary infection, including meningococcal disease. Flu and other viral respiratory infections are known risk factors for meningococcal disease, Professor Booy said.

NSW Health director of communicable disease Vicky Sheppeard said if parents suspected their child might have the flu they should give them plenty of fluids, rest, pain relief for aches and pain, and take them to a GP if they were worried.

Parents should bring their child to hospital if they had severe headaches or neck stiffness, difficulty breathing, if they were lethargic and not drinking enough fluids, Dr Sheppeard said.

Professor Booy said rapid breathing and becoming pale or blue should also prompt families to seek medical attention.

Like most children, Vanika was not immunised against influenza. The annual flu vaccine is recommended for children aged six months and over to reduce the likelihood of becoming ill with influenza, but it is not part of the national immunisation program.

Flu symptoms in children include cough, fatigue, muscle aches and high fever that can last two to three weeks. Exhaustion is an early prominent feature of flu and children may also have nausea and diarrhoea.