Woman With Flu Dies 3 Weeks After Losing Unborn Baby

An Arkansas woman who lost her unborn baby last month after contracting the H1N1 flu virus has died.

Twenty-nine-year-old Leslie Creekmore had been hospitalized first in Arkansas then transferred to St. Louis in mid-January, where a hospital spokesperson confirmed she had died Monday. (Via KMBC)

According to KSDK, just two days after she was moved to St. Louis, Creekmore suffered a miscarriage. She was only 20 weeks pregnant.

Her husband Chris took to Facebook Monday to express his grief. "She's gone now, and the universe itself is lesser for the loss... I loved her with every iota of my being and beyond, and I have no intention of that changing just because she isn't here with me corporeally."

But according to the Centers for Disease Control, both Creekmore's and her baby's lives could have been saved by simply getting a flu shot.

The CDC says on its website, "If you're pregnant, a flu shot is your best protection against serious illness from the flu ... The flu shot is safe to get at any time while you are pregnant, during any trimester."

But CNN reports Creekmore's doctor told her to postpone getting a flu shot until after her first trimester, so she and her husband decided to wait until she was further along in her pregnancy.

In fact, CNN adds Creekmore had planned on getting a shot at a clinic Jan. 13 - the same day she was hospitalized and put on a ventilator in Arkansas.

News of Creekmore's death comes just as the number of flu-related deaths in Arkansas continues to rise. KNWA reports, as of Wednesday, 41 people between the ages of 25 and 50 have died.

Health officials say life-threatening complications from the flu like in Creekmore's case are rare, but the flu is known to increase the risk of miscarriage and premature birth in pregnant women.