VANCOUVER — The death of a B.C. child has become the third fatality in the province linked to the enterovirus D68 infection.
Dr. Danuta Skowronski (skov-ron-ski) of the B.C. Centre for Disease Control says the child was under the age of five when it died in November and the agency was notified last week.
Skowronski says tests confirmed the presence of the respiratory virus, but experts can't say for certain whether it caused or how it contributed to the death.
She says she can't reveal the child's gender or age because of privacy issues.
The deaths of an elderly person and young adult have also been associated with the virus, and Skowronski says the patients had multiple underlying medical conditions or asthma.
She says most of those infected with enterovirus D68 have what appear to be symptoms of a common cold: sneezing, runny nose, a cough, and some have no symptoms at all.