A local patient being treated for fungal meningitis linked to the recent massive outbreak has died.

That death, the first local fungal meningitis-related fatality, was reported at Cookeville Regional Medical Center Friday, October 19.

At least one other confirmed case of fungal meningitis has been treated at the hospital in recent weeks.

Those patients–whose identities haven’t been revealed at this time–are reportedly believed to have contracted the illness from “an epidural steroid injection from the lots being investigated by the FDA and CDC,” CRMC says.

“We’ve seen what I would consider three confirmed cases (of fungal meningitis),” Dr. Mark Pierce, CRMC infection specialist, said. “We actually have two (cases) that are lab-confirmed (and) one that I know will be lab-confirmed…These are elderly patients with other medical problems.”

“Twenty-five (patients) have been seen here who we know have received the injections…just to be evaluated,” Melahn Finley, CRMC public relations and marketing director, said.

“Some of those have had spinal taps,” Dr. Pierce added. “Some of those we’re actively following up to make sure nothing develops.”

He adds patients with the illness are being treated per CDC recommendation.

“The CDC is recommending that, for now, we treat them with the two drugs that it’s most likely to be sensitive to,” he said. “I think once we have better sensitivity data, we might be able to back off the treatment a little bit. But, for now, we’re going to treat them with two different drugs.”

A third possible fungal meningitis case is reportedly being evaluated and treated at this time.

“We don’t have confirmed (fungal) growth yet (in that patient) but I’m sure we will have,” Dr. Pierce said.

The fungus grows slowly, meaning more reported/confirmed cases are possible.

“The latest one, we’ve seen, was injected more recently,” Dr. Pierce said.

“The others were injected…in August. So, it can take several weeks to actually develop.

A CRMC spokesperson adds that the hospital has not received or used any of the injections from New England Compounding Center, the pharmacy blamed for distributing the tainted drugs–only evaluating and treating those who have expressed symptoms.

“It is important to note that you absolutely cannot catch this (fungal meningitis) from someone,” Dr. Pierce said.

“If you did not get an injection, into your epidural space, you are not going to get meningitis.”

Symptoms of fungal meningitis include: fever; headache; stiff neck; nausea and vomiting; photophobia (sensitivity to light); and, altered mental status.

As of press time on Tuesday, October 23, nine reported fungal meningitis-related deaths had been reported in Tennessee.

The Tennessee Department of Health published a list of 74 health care facilities statewide that have received suspicious material from NECC on its website Monday afternoon, October 22.

Two Cookeville facilities made that list: CRMC and Perimeter Surgery Center.

CRMC says the suspicious material they received was a topical Lidocaine.

“The only NECC product we had was a Lidocaine cream,” Finley said.

“It had three different medications in it but it’s something you apply to the skin.”

Finley says those creams have since been discarded.

Dr. Stewart Galloway, surgeon at Perimeter Surgery Center, offered this statement: “Obviously, as you know, we did purchase from them. It was an antibiotic and anti-inflammatory combination that we use for cataract surgery…We immediately sequestered and discarded all of ours (NECC products). In the optomic/eye world, there’s been no reports of any contamination in any optomic products.

“We’re quite confident that we don’t have an issue.”

Dr. Galloway adds that any potential problems would have already surfaced and would not have resulted in fungal meningitis.

“It would have been an infection inside the eye,” he said.

“That would have long since occurred. So we, essentially, have zero-concern on our end.”

As of 10:07 a.m. Tuesday, October 23, the FDA withdrew that list of 74 Tennessee facilities who have received NECC materials citing technical problems and incorrect data.

According to the Tennessee Department of Health website: “TDH believes the corrected list will identify significantly fewer Tennessee facilities affected by the recall.”