The Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services is assisting health care facilities across the state deal with recalled medications.
The Food and Drug Administration has recalled all medications manufactured by the New England Compounding Center in Framingham, Mass. The compounding pharmacy is responsible for the multistate outbreak of fungal meningitis linked to contaminated steroid injections produced by the company.
Nebraska has no reports of receiving the contaminated product, but 29 health care facilities have received other medications manufactured by the company which have now been recalled.
"The products received in Nebraska
have been recalled but ARE NOT the products currently implicated in the
outbreak," said Dr. Joann Schaefer, the state's Chief Medical Officer and
Director of Public Health for DHHS. "DHHS is working with local health
departments to contact health care providers to remind them of the recall and
encourage them to follow up with patients who received an injectable NECC
product after May 21, 2012 and review their cases. This is being done out of an
abundance of caution."
The CDC
and FDA continue to coordinate a multistate investigation of fungal meningitis
and joint infection among patients who received a contaminated steroid
injection prepared by NECC either to the spinal area or in a joint space like a
knee, shoulder or ankle.
There are 257 cases and 20 deaths associated with this
outbreak spanning 16 states according to the CDC. Federal health
officials haven't determined the original source of the outbreak; however it
has been linked to three lots of injectable steroid medication. The
contaminated medication has been recalled as well as all medication made by
NECC.
Meningitis is the swelling of
protective membranes covering the brain and spinal cord. The swelling is
usually caused by bacteria or viral infection but it can also be caused by
fungus. This is called fungal meningitis.
The types of fungus
identified in this outbreak are Exsrohilum, Aspergillus and Cladosporium.
Fungal meningitis is not contagious. Treatment for the fungus is long courses of high dose
antifungal medications, usually given by IV in the hospital.
For more information about the outbreak and the recalled products, go to http://www.cdc.gov/HAI/outbreaks/meningitis.html or http://www.fda.gov/Drugs/DrugSafety/ucm322734.htm.
Nebraska Facilities That Have
Received Recalled NECC Products:
- Alegent Health Bergan Mercy, 7500 Mercy Road, Omaha
- Alegent Health Plastic Surgery, 7710 Mercy Road Suite 320,
Omaha
- Alegent Women's Healthcare, 11109 South 84th Street, Suite
4800, Papillion
- Columbus Community Hospital, 4600 38th Street, Columbus
- Columbus Surgery Center, 3772 43rd Avenue Suite B, Columbus
- Creighton Medical Center, 601 North 30th Street, Omaha
- Ehrling Bergquist Hospital, 2501 Capehart Road, Offutt AFB
- Faith Regional Health Services, 2700 W. Norfolk Ave, Norfolk
- Faith Regional Hospital-Cardio, 2700 West Norfolk Avenue,
Norfolk
- Faith Regional Surgery Center, 301 North 27th Street, Suite
3, Norfolk
- Family Practice of Grand Island, P.C., 2116 W. Faidley
Avenue, Suite 400, Grand Island
- Fremont Area Medical Center, 450 East 23rd Street, Fremont
- Good Samaritan Hospital, 10 E. 31st Street, Kearney
- Heartland Surgery Center, 3515 30th Avenue, Kearney
- Lakeside Hospital, 16901 Lakeside Hills Court, Omaha
- Memorial Community Health, Inc., 1423 7th Street, Aurora
- Memorial Hospital, 1423 7th Street, Aurora
- Midwest Eye Surgery Center, 4353 Dodge Street, Omaha
- Nebraska Heart Hospital, 7500 South 91st Street, Lincoln
- Nebraska Pain Consultants, 6940 Van Dorn Street, Lincoln
- Nemaha County Hospital, 2022 13th Street, Auburn
- Ogallala Community Hospital, 2601 North Spruce Street,
Ogallala
- Omaha Amb. Surgery Center, 825 N. 90th Street, Omaha
- Outpatient Surg Specialties Center Llc, 11704 West Center
Road, Suite 110, Omaha
- Physicians Surgical Center, 1500 South 48th Street, Lincoln
- Pure Aesthetic Medispa, 3610 Richmond Circle, Grand Island
- Saint Elizabeth Regional Med. Ctr., 555 South 70th Street,
Lincoln
- Seward Memorial Hospital, 300 North Columbia Avenue, Seward
- Spine & Pain Center Of Nebraska, PC, 9850 Nicholas
Street, Omaha
- Surgery Center Of Fremont-, 2727 North Clarkson Street,
Fremont
- York General Hospital, 2222 North Lincoln Avenue, York
