Mom who lost her child in good health because of the flu says the shot can not wait

Photography by Facebook / Laura Sidari

Laura Sidari urges families to be vaccinated against the flu. Despite the fact that she and her husband were both doctors, Sidari did not realize how much the flu could be dangerous for healthy children until the tragic loss of his son, Leon, aged Four years.

"Last year, Leon was one of the country's 180 children who died of the flu.He was an" old soul "with patience and gentleness beyond his age 4. His smile was Contagious and his love for his brothers inspiring … half of the children who die every year, he had no old health problems, "wrote the mother on Facebook." I had delayed his shooting for s & # 39; 39; line up on a visit from a child much later in the season, at which he did not survive. "

Photography by Facebook / Laura Sidari

On the morning of Christmas Eve, Leon was diagnosed with bacterial pneumonia and influenza A on an emergency basis. Yet, his parents believed that he would come out of it.

Sidari wrote on CafeMom that at that time, his son was only sick for a day in total. The day before, they had brought him to the hospital. He had signs of fever and muscle aches, sipped chicken and noodle soup, and watched cartoons on the living room couch.

But just two days after the onset of the general symptoms of the flu, the state of Leon has quickly worsened. His lungs were bleeding and he died on Christmas morning.

The devastating truth was that there was hardly any time for medical intervention, even though she and her husband had both recognized the first signs of the flu.

"I now understand very well why the medical community is massively recommending the annual flu shot for all people over the age of 6 months," Sidari told Facebook. "It is clinically proven that influenza vaccine reduces the risk of influenza-related deaths in healthy children by 65%." Among children who die each year from flu-related complications, about 80% of them have not been vaccinated against influenza this season is the best option available to prevent infant mortality from influenza. "

The percentage of young children in the United States who receive no vaccine has quadrupled since 2001. In the 2016-17 season, only 59% of children aged 6 months to 17 years were vaccinated against influenza.

Sidari shares his painful experience in the hope of preventing other parents from losing a child because of a preventative disease.

"Leon is my reason this season, and every season, to get flu shot on time," she wrote. "It's the best time of the year to get vaccinated." Vacation planning and fall celebrations can wait, but not the flu shot. "