U.S. Child Deaths from Swine Flu Exceed 100

Swine flu has killed at least 114 U.S. children according to the latest figures from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Nineteen swine flu-related pediatric deaths were reported this week, the agency stated Friday in announcing the worst week to date since the outbreak began in April.

More deaths are likely but not confirmed, the agency's chief Thomas R. Frieden said. About two-thirds of the childhood deaths are among children with other health problems.

Here's what's different about swine flu, however: "In a usual flu season, 90 percent of the deaths are among people over the age of 65. In H1N1, 90 percent of the deaths are in people under the age of 65," Frieden said.

"What we have today is essentially more virus, more vaccine and more treatment," he explained. "It’s only the end of October and flu season lasts until May. In the past two months, we've seen more hospitalizations in people under the age of 65 than in most entire flu seasons."

H1N1 vaccine supply is increasing steadily. There’s not enough for all providers or people who would want it," Frieden said. "But the gap between supply and demand is closing. ... More people at high-risk are being vaccinated. More providers are getting the vaccine. But it's not nearly as available as we'd like. Also, we're seeing really, very strong demand for seasonal flu vaccination."

Here are the CDC recommendations for who should be vaccinated first:

• pregnant women,
• people who live with or provide care for infants younger than 6 months (e.g., parents, siblings, and day care providers),
• health care and emergency medical services personnel,
• people 6 months through 24 years of age, and,
• people 25 years through 64 years of age who have certain medical conditions that put them at higher risk for influenza-related complications.

More vaccination info is available from the CDC here. Additional flu news from LiveScience is here.

"And of course, it's always something that everyone of us can do, to stay home if we're sick," Frieden said. "Cover our cough and sneeze and wash our hands."