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Meningitis in Michigan
Posted: 10.08.2012 at 7:17 PM
Updated: 10.09.2012 at 6:50 AM
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Fungal meningitis is the cause of two deaths in Michigan

HANCOCK -- Two deaths and 21 cases of fungal meningitis so far in downstate Michigan, all because of an outbreak linked to steroid injections that's affected nine states.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there are 105 cases throughout the country.  Each person who reported the infection received an epidural injection in their back.

"It's not spread from one person to another, so the alert is really for those people who underwent those procedures with that particular medication," said Director of Public Health and Education at the Western Upper Peninsula Health Department, Barbara Auten.

The medication that was manufactured in Massachusetts has since been recalled, and none of it was used in the U.P.

"None of the product used in that procedure has been distributed in the U.P. Unless someone got their health care downstate for this specific type of treatment, they would not be exposed to the infection. There would be no need to be concerned," said Medical Director from the Western Upper Peninsula Health Department, Dr. Theresa Frankovich.

The state with the highest number of infections is Tennessee, tallying 35 cases and four deaths.

The health department says one of the biggest things to take away from the meningitis scare is how quickly doctors from all over the country were able to recognize and compare the same unusual cases. And they say, that's all thanks to the Centers for Disease Control.

"A physician seeing one case in Tennessee would have no way of knowing normally that there was also a case similar to his in Michigan. And the fact that this data gets reported centrally, and we're able to see patterns across states, is what allows us to identify these kinds of outbreaks quickly," Frankovich added.

To see the most up-to-date statistics from the C.D.C., click here.

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