Matt Roberts, a Mattoon High School senior from Mattoon, Illinois, became ill with an E. coli infection just before an E. coli outbreak was traced to El Rancherito restaurant in Effingham last September.
His E. coli infection progressed to hemolytic uremic syndrome and he was hospitalized for over a month. While hospitalized, Matt was placed in a medically-induced coma for ten days, and underwent dialysis and blood and plasma transfusions. Even after he was released from the hospital, Matt continued to receive plasma transfusions.
The Coles County Health Department worked to identify the source of his E. coli infection but has thus far been unable to determine the source of his illness.