Investigation into the cause of the deaths of a Missouri mother and son in late February has revealed no new information.
The deaths of Zach Smith, 19, and his mother, Rhonda Smith, 48, within four days of each other at first raised concerns that a dangerous new virus was on the loose. Both mother and son had previously been in good health.
Physicians at the hospital in St. Peters, Missouri, were at a loss to explain why the Smiths’ health declined so rapidly and what caused their deaths.
According to the Las Vegas Review Journal, Zach Smith went to St. Joseph’s Health Center Friday after feeling flu-like symptoms. Over the next two days, he "developed infections, his organs shut down, he went into cardiac arrest and died Sunday."
Four days later, Zach’s mother, Rhonda, was checked into Barnes St. Peters Hospital after she went to have a side ache checked.
The Las Vegas paper said Smith’s blood sugar was so high that she was at risk of a coma, although she wasn't diabetic.
Like her son, she had severe respiratory problems. Her heart stopped eight times and was revived before she died 12 hours after being admitted.
A GoFundMe site offers additional details about the Smiths’ symptoms and deaths.
Traumatized family members were urged to get chest X-rays and flu tests in case something was passed on to them. No one else became ill.
No information is publicly available regarding the cause of death, including whether it was viral or bacterial.
WND contacted the St. Charles County Public Health Division and spoke to a media spokesman, who indicated he could not comment on the specific case but said the deaths "did not constitute a public health threat."
Calls to the CDC and the Missouri Department of Public Health were not returned.
In the absence of hard data, speculation has arisen about the cause of death. Several sources noted the accidental release of dangerous bacteria from a high-security laboratory at the Tulane National Primate Research Center in Louisiana, located 35 miles north of New Orleans. However no link to the Smiths’ deaths have been established.
County health officials never stated the Smiths died of the flu, but they did cite February as the "peak" month during flu season and encouraged residents to get a flu vaccine.
Mysterious deaths occasionally lead to the discovery of a new virus, such as the case of a Kansas man who died in the spring of 2014 from the newly discovered "Bourbon virus" after being bitten by a tick.