A pregnant Chicago woman became the fourth person in the US Illinois State to die of the A/H1N1 flu a day after she gave birth, officials of the Public Health Department said on Wednesday.
The latest death was a 20-year-old woman from Chicago who died on Saturday at the University of Illinois Medical Centre.
The woman was admitted to the hospital on May 23 suffering from flu-like symptoms. Officials said the woman's condition quickly deteriorated and the woman's baby, a 27-week foetus was delivered by caesarean section on Friday. The woman died the following day and was diagnosed with pneumonia and the H1N1 flu.
Illinois public health officials said in addition to the latest death, three other people, a second person from Chicago, a suburban Cook County resident and a Kane County resident have died from the H1N1 flu, said Melaney Arnold, an Illinois public health department spokeswoman.
Officials said all four people who died had other underlying medical conditions.
Officials said there are currently 1,268 confirmed H1N1 flu cases in Illinois.
According to the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention website, 11,054 confirmed and probable cases exist in the United States.