H1N1 FLU: ROME RADIOLOGY ASSISTANT RAISES DEATH TOLL TO 20

H1N1 FLU: ROME RADIOLOGY ASSISTANT RAISES DEATH TOLL TO 20

(corrects 'radiology assistant' for 'radiologist') (ANSA) - Rome, November 4 - A Rome radiology assistant became Italy's 20th victim of the H1N1 flu virus on Wednesday after a 13-year-old girl in northern Italy who died the same day.

Doctors said the man, 50, was in poor health before contracting the virus, which he'd been battling in hospital for several days.

Earlier on Wednesday, a 13-year-old girl with a congenital lung condition died of flu related causes in a hospital in Monza.

According to the health ministry, all but two of Italy's flu deaths have involved serious pre-existing health problems.