He died shortly after. This is an example of a viral pneumonia due to influenza . The diagnosis was confirmed by serology. Viral cultures do not have a high sensitivity and take a long time to come back. There is no specific treatment for this pneumonia of viral origin.
Influenza is an extremely contagious, acute, self-limited disease of the upper and lower airways.
It spreads easily from person to person by virus-containing respiratory droplets and secretions. Although vaccines are available, because the virus periodically alters its surface antigens, the host immunity is often not protective from year to year. New vaccines made out of killed virus are made available every year for the susceptible populations and for those who work with them.