US health officials want a worldwide health emergency to be proclaimed in response to a fatal fungus outbreak linked to inexpensive plastic surgery in Mexico.
Two patients who underwent surgeries under epidural anesthesia perished from meningitis, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
CDC Monitors Cases in US and Mexico
Almost 400 persons are being watched in the US and Mexico. Two cosmetic surgery clinics in the Mexican city of Matamoros have shut down.
Authorities have recommended individuals who underwent procedures requiring epidural anesthesia at either the River Side Surgical Center or Clinica K-3 since January to get checked, even if they are not currently experiencing any symptoms.
Many Americans travel to Mexico for cosmetic procedures including liposuction, breast augmentation, and Brazilian butt lifts, all of which need anesthetic injections close to the spinal column.
As per Dallas Smith of the CDC, the anesthetics used in the current outbreak may have contaminated the morphine and other medications used in conjunction with the epidural during the surgeries.
Infections of the brain and spinal cord are suspected in 14 of the cases, whereas 11 are likely to be caused by fungus.
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Meningitis Outbreak Raises Concerns
Headaches, fever, stiff neck, nausea, vomiting, disorientation, and light sensitivity were among the symptoms that the patients described.
The meninges, the protective layer that surrounds the brain and spinal cord, enlarge as a result of the infection.
The CDC cautioned that meningitis can quickly turn fatal if symptoms appear.
Authorities in Mexico are concerned that a deadly fungus outbreak linked to clinics in other parts of the country earlier this year will recur as a result of test results. In one outbreak, meningitis diagnosis rates were around 50% fatal.
In order to possibly proclaim a public health emergency of worldwide concern, a WHO committee would need to be established.
This happens if the incident is uncommon, has a major impact on public health, and poses a risk of spreading internationally and placing limitations on travel.
If an outbreak is confirmed, the Director-General releases a list of recommendations to countries, which may include stepped-up surveillance to spot emerging cases, isolation of sick, quarantining of contacts, and screening procedures at borders, airports, ports, and points of entry.
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