Over 200 Americans at risk of fungal meningitis

Los Angeles, May 26 (IANS) More than 200 American patients could be at risk of fungal meningitis after having surgical procedures at clinics in a Mexico border city, according to the latest warning of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

The CDC has said that it was working with the Mexican Ministry of Health and local and state officials to respond to an outbreak linked to patients who underwent procedures under epidural anesthesia in Matamoros, Mexico, across the border from Brownsville, Texas, Xinhua news agency reported.

Officials had identified two clinics associated with the outbreak, River Side Surgical Center and Clinica K-3. These clinics were closed on May 13 this year.

The CDC is working with 25 state and local health departments to contact people in the US with potential exposure and advise them to go to their nearest health center, urgent care, or emergency room for diagnostic testing for meningitis.