The first death from the Mexican flu was a previously health young adult age 39. It was recorded that when she arrived at the hospital her hands and feet were a shade of blue from lack of oxygen. She was treated with antibiotics but her condition got worse until she died days later. At this point the disease had still not been identified.
When the disease was identified as a variant of the swine flu now dubbed the Mexican flu, the hospital staff was tested for exposure. 18 staff members were tested and their samples sent to a lab. When the test results returned only 6 of the sample had been taken right and were able to be tested. All results were negative. The first victim was working as a temporary tax collector that required her to go door to door. After this first death over 400 people she came in contact with were questioned. None of the questioned were ever tested even though some had symptoms of the Mexican flu. Family members of the deceased were questioned 2 weeks after the first death. Again none were tested.
The patients that were in the same ward at the hospital of the first victim were quarantined until they were healthy enough to leave, again none were tested.
A neighbor near where the first victim lived had flu like symptoms but had recovered without treatment. His job was as a caterer to local hotels, he and his family were told that they would be tested but the medical personnel never returned and once again no testing was done.
Days after the first death two other patients died of respiratory illnesses in the same hospital. No tests were conducted to confirm what disease had killed them.
A pattern has emerged in Mexico, testing has not been a large part of the plan to contain this pandemic. Even when tests were conducted 2/3rd were not sampled correctly. Because of this an accurate number of persons infected and death from the Mexican flu will never be known. With a number of 172 reported (there are more reported now,) deaths, one can only speculate the true number of deaths from the Mexican flu 2009.
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