Three people have died, eight others have lost their vision and four patients had to have their eyeballs removed after using eye drops contaminated with rare bacteria.
As of March 14, a reported 68 patients in 16 states have been infected with this ‘rare strain’ of Pseudomonas aeruginosa, according to an update from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Global Pharma Healthcare recalled its artificial tear lubricating eye drops that were distributed by EzriCare and Delsam Pharma last month. The drops were sold at pharmacies across the country, including Walmart, Target and CVS, and on Amazon, though the products have since been recalled.
Health authorities continue to track infections as they investigate the outbreak in 16 states, including California, New York, Illinois, Texas and Pennsylvania.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says 68 people in 16 states were diagnosed with infections from the bacteria on EzriCare, which caused three deaths and eight people who lost their vision, and four people who had to have their eyeballs removed.
As of March 14, a reported 68 patients in 16 states have been infected with this ‘rare strain’ of Pseudomonas aeruginosa, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
The CDC is urging patients who have used EzriCare or Delsam Pharma’s artificial tears and have noticed symptoms of an eye infection to seek medical attention “immediately.”
Signs of an eye infection include yellow, green, or clear discharge from the eye; eye pain or discomfort; redness of the eye or eyelid; sensation of something in the eye; increased sensitivity to light; and blurred vision, the CDC reports.
Most of the cases have been linked to four regional clusters and Ezricare drops are the only product used by patients in each of those clusters.
Most patients reported using 10 different brands of artificial tears, but EzriCare Artificial Tears, a preservative-free, over-the-counter product packaged in multidose vials, was the most commonly reported brand.
The CDC is urging patients who have used EzriCare or Delsam Pharma’s artificial tears and have noticed symptoms of an eye infection to seek medical attention “immediately.”
Global Pharma Healthcare recalled its artificial tear lubricating eye drops that were distributed by EzriCare and Delsam Pharma last month. The drops were sold at pharmacies across the country, including Walmart, Target and CVS.
The CDC identified the 16 states where the patients are infected as California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, North Carolina, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Nevada, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Washington, and Wisconsin. .
The recalled drops were manufactured by Global Pharma Healthcare in India, where the bacterium, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, is commonly linked to hospital outbreaks.
It can be spread through contaminated hands or medical equipment.
The outbreak is considered particularly worrying because the bacteria causing it are resistant to standard antibiotics.
Two case studies published in JAMA Ophthalmology this week and featured by CNN provided further details on the infections.
In a caseA 72-year-old woman lost vision in her left eye after using EzriCare artificial tears for approximately one week.
“She started noticing blurry vision in her left eye for a few days,” said Dr. Ahmed Omar, an ophthalmologist at Cleveland University Hospitals Medical Center, who treated the woman.
“Initially it was painless, but according to the patient and her husband, she woke up one morning to a yellow discharge on her pillow.
And that’s when he began to notice that the appearance of his eye had changed.
When the woman went to the emergency room, doctors found a large ulcer on her left cornea.
He stayed in the hospital for three weeks enduring intravenous antibiotics, antibiotic eye drops and multiple surgeries.
He even eventually lost vision in his left eye due to serous choroidal detachment, an abnormal collection of fluid, according to the study.
In one case, a 72-year-old woman lost vision in her left eye after using EzriCare artificial tears for about a week. She was in the hospital for three weeks enduring intravenous antibiotics, antibiotic eye drops and multiple surgeries.
This scanning electron microscope image from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows the rod-shaped bacterium Pseudomonas aeruginosa.
Another case study involved a 72-year-old man who developed significant vision loss due to an infection of the cornea. He later got better, but still has vision problems.
She had experienced no previous eye problems, but after using EzriCare artificial tears for dry eyes, she had severe pain and went to the Bascom Palmer Eye Institute in Miami, where it was discovered that she had multidrug-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa keratitis.
“When we examined his right eye, there was a severe corneal infection,” said Dr. Marissa Shoji, who treated the man.
“He could only see shadows and could not see letters due to the extent of the ulcer.”
Doctors prescribed the man strong antibiotics, but he only got worse.
“Usually we expect some degree of improvement with these drugs, but when we saw him two days later, he was getting much worse,” he said.
“That’s when we asked specifically about the EzriCare tears, because we knew they were associated with a resistant infection that may not respond to those really strong antibiotics.”
They found that cultures of the man’s cornea and the EzriCare bottle developed the same multidrug-resistant strain of Pseudomonas.
In another case, a 72-year-old man had a severe infection in his left eye. Although he had improved a month later, true, he was still experiencing vision problems.
Doctors discovered that cultures from the man’s cornea and the EzriCare bottle developed the same multidrug-resistant strain of Pseudomonas.
At his two-month follow-up, his vision was 20/400, which means he can see at 20 feet what healthy people can see at 400 feet.
“At some point, he was in danger of permanent vision loss,” said Dr. Guillermo Amescua, an ophthalmologist at the Bascom Palmer Eye Institute.
“Now he has what’s called corneal blindness because he’s 20/400 and he has a scar on his cornea, but with a corneal transplant, he might have a better prognosis.”
In January, after learning of the CDC’s investigation into pseudomonas infections, EzriCare said in a statement that it “took immediate action to stop any distribution or sale of EzriCare’s artificial tears.” To the greatest extent possible, we have contacted customers to advise against continued use of the product.”