HIDALGO COUNTY, Texas (ValleyCentral) — Hidalgo County officials have confirmed to ValleyCentral that a 3-year-old girl’s death earlier this month was flu-related.
The Rio Grande Valley child’s death is now the nation’s first confirmed pediatric flu death in the United States for the 2022 flu season, according to CDC data updated Friday morning.
County health officials had said the child died of “respiratory symptoms” after testing positive for the flu. State officials have now confirmed the child’s death was flu-related, Hidalgo County Public Affairs Division Director Carlos Sanchez told ValleyCentral.
On Friday morning, the CDC announced the first “infuenza-associated” death of the season was reported this week.
Although the case was suspected to have been flu-related, cases involving children must be verified by state health officials, a process that can take weeks, officials had told ValleyCentral on Oct. 19. The girl had passed away earlier in that week.
“She tested positive for the flu, but the way it works is any death of a child under the age of 12 has to be investigated by the state,” Sanchez said. “And the state will determine whether the flu was a contributing factor to the death or the cause of the death.”
According to the CDC, there were 39 pediatric deaths reported in the 2021-2022 season, but that number may be under-estimated, they said.
This report will be updated.
