Édgar of La Gloria

From Édgar, 5, Coughs Heard Round the World

Excerpt:

The government has identified Édgar as the first person in Mexico to have become infected with a virulent strain of swine flu, a notoriety that could raise questions about how Mexican officials reacted — or failed to react — to the early stages of what might become a global epidemic.

Édgar was one of hundreds of people in La Gloria who came down with flulike symptoms in an outbreak that federal officials say began March 9.

Local residents accuse public health officials of discounting the outbreak at the time, reassuring them that it was nothing grave.

Federal officials said they did respond quickly, though they acknowledged that they took the matter more seriously after the virus infected people in another part of the country, which was at least a week after Édgar developed symptoms.

Among the many unknowns about the flu that struck Édgar are whether it could have set off more alarms early on, and whether it could have been contained if it had.

La Gloria may not, in the end, be found to be the source of anything. The village has many immigrants in the United States. Mexican epidemiologists say one theory is that someone who had been in the United States brought the virus back to the community.

Before Édgar fell ill, another person in San Diego may have been affected, said Dr. Miguel Ángel Lezana, Mexico’s chief government epidemiologist.

Even now, Édgar’s mother, María del Carmen Hernández, said she received conflicting accounts of the exact illness that kept her son in bed for three days. No one has explained what she should be doing to keep him and the rest of the family healthy, she said, signs that Mexico’s response effort may be spotty, especially in rural areas.

“Some people are saying my boy is to blame for everyone else in the country getting sick,” said Mrs. Hernández, 34, a blank stare on her face as she recounted the family’s ordeal. “I don’t believe that. I don’t know what to think.”

Comment: Cute kid .... interesting article. I may be wrong (but I hope I'm not): I think this has been way over hyped by the government and the media! What do you think?