November 26, 2012 — The current case count from the CDC involves 490 cases of fungal meningitis, 12 peripheral joint infections, and 34 deaths in 19 states. In Indiana, 55 people have been diagnosed with meningitis and 5 people have died.
An outbreak of fungal meningitis has been traced to epidural steroid injections from New England Compounding Center. Many illnesses have occurred in six clinics in Indiana. The Indiana Health Department recommends that anyone who has had an epi dural steroid injection (commonly administered in outpatient clinics to treat back pain or joint pain) since May 21, 2012, should contact a physician if they are concerned about meningitis.
According to the Minnesota Health Department, the following facilities are known to have received steroid shots from New England Compounding Center:
On October 11, 2012, Barbe Puro from Savage, Minnesota, became the first person to file a lawsuit against New England Compounding Center for injuries caused by recalled steroid shots. She suffers from headaches, nausea, and her future health is uncertain. She is seeking damages for her injuries.
Unlike viral or bacterial meningitis, fungal meningitis is not contagious. This is why large outbreaks of fungal meningitis are very rare. The disease occurs when fungal spores get inside a person’s central nervous system (specifically, cerebrospinal fluid) and infect the protective membrane around the brain and spinal cord.
The symptoms of fungal meningitis are similar to viral or bacterial meningitis. However, fungal meningitis often has mild symptoms at first. Some patients only have a minor headache or nausea. These symptoms tend to grow gradually worse. Symptoms may not appear for several weeks or months after a patient’s exposure.
The Schmidt Firm, PLLC has been recognized as one of the nation’s leading plaintiffs' law firms and handles cases in all 50 states. We are very proud of our legal achievements, but equally self-respecting of our firm's reputation for providing personal attention to each and every client we represent.
that were distributed from its facility in Framingham, Massachusetts. On October 11, 2012 FDA released a MedWatch Alert stating that samples of injectable betamethasone and cardioplegia solution tested positive for bacterial contamination.
In September 2012, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), in collaboration with state and local health departments and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) external icon.
CDC recommends that clinicians remain vigilant for the possibility that infections may have resulted from injection of NECC products, and that routine laboratory and microbiologic tests, including bacterial and fungal cultures, should be obtained as necessary by treating clinicians.
CDC and FDA identified bacterial and/or fungal contamination in unopened vials of betamethasone, cardioplegia, and triamcinolone solutions distributed and recalled from NECC. These include bacteria known as Bacillus, and fungal species including Aspergillus tubingensis, Aspergillus fumigatus, Cladosporium species, and Penicillium species. Although rare, some of the identified Bacillus species can cause disease in humans. Some of the fungal organisms identified, particularly Aspergillus fumigatus, are also known to cause disease in humans. It is not known how product contamination with these organisms could affect patients clinically. See CDC’s Advice for Clinicians below.
The investigation includes fungal meningitis (a form of meningitis that is not contagious), localized spinal or paraspinal infections, such as epidural abscess and arachnoiditis, and infections associated with injections in a peripheral joint space, such as a knee, shoulder, or ankle. The predominant fungus identified in patients is Exserohilum ...
Although rare, some of the identified Bacillus species can cause disease in humans. Some of the fun gal organisms identified, particularly Aspergillus fumigatus, are also known to cause disease in humans . It is not known how product contamination with these organisms could affect patients clinically.
FDA released a MedWatch Safety Alert. external icon. on October 15 stating that the sterility of any injectable drugs, including ophthalmic drugs that are injectable or used in conjunction with eye surgery, and cardioplegia solutions produced by NECC is of significant concern.