HEALTH HEADLINES

U.S. meningitis outbreak not affecting Canadians: Health Canada

The Canadian Press Published Tuesday, October 30, 2012 1:48PM EDT

This file image from The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows the Exserohilum rostratum fungus. The black mold creeping into the spines of hundreds of people who got tainted shots for back pain marks uncharted U.S. medical territory. (AP Photo/The Centers for Disease Control, File)

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OTTAWA -- Health Canada says the meningitis outbreak that has claimed at least 25 lives in the United States is not affecting Canada.

But it says any Canadians who travelled to the U.S. for medical treatment on or after May 21 of this year should check online to see if their treatment facility received products from the New England Compounding Center.

The list of affected facilities is available on the website of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control at www.cdc.gov.

Health Canada says Canadians who may have been treated with a product from the company should immediately consult with a health-care provider.

The large outbreak has resulted in at least 354 cases of meningitis in 19 states.

Health Canada says there have been no cases of fungal meningitis linked to the outbreak reported in Canada, and New England Compounding Center is not licensed to produce health products for the Canadian market.

Steroids from the company were contaminated with fungus. Those steroids were used for the treatment of back and joint pain.