A Cornell University student died Friday of complications related to swine flu, university officials said.
President David Skorton released a statement Friday evening saying Warren J. Schor, a 20-year-old economics and management major from Clinton Corners, N.Y., died at a hospital.
Schor was among 520 diagnosed with influenza-type illness in the past three weeks,
Cornell spokesman Thomas Bruce said privacy regulations prevented discussion of whether there were any other health issues that contributed to Schor's death. He said the university has been working closely with state and federal health agencies and has been aggressive in reaching out to students and informing them of precautions they should follow to limit the flu's spread.
The university's health service has extended its hours for seeing students and has been taking calls from them around the clock, he said.
In a message to students on the university's Web site, campus health officials said most students who have gone to the campus infirmary with flu symptoms have had mild illness and recovered fully. They advised students with flu symptoms to stay in their rooms and at least 6 feet away from roommates until they've been fever-free for 24 hours.
The university has nearly 20,000 students.
Government health officials said Friday that influenza is circulating unusually early this year with cases in all 50 states -- nearly all the swine flu variety.
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Dr. Anne Schuchat, of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said at a briefing in Washington, D.C., that cases are mainly occurring in children and young adults. She said H1N1 swine flu broke out in the spring and never went away.
Supplies of swine flu vaccine are expected to be available in mid-October, and testing shows it works with a single dose and takes effect rapidly.
In the United States, it's estimated 36,000 people die every year from ordinary seasonal flu, most often the elderly and the very young. Roughly 200,000 are hospitalized because of flu complications.
