Eye Drops Killed One, Hurt Others: Drug-Resistant Bacteria

Health

By Court of Andre

March 17, 2023 | 12:19 p.m.

Keep an eye out for this disturbing developing story.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says 68 patients in 16 US states have been diagnosed with a rare bacterial infection likely caused by preservative-free eye drops.

The health organization says a rare, antibiotic-resistant strain of Pseudomonas aeruginosa has led to the death of an American, as well as the loss of sight of eight others across the country.

Four infected people have been forced to have their eyes surgically removed, including Florida grandmother Clara Oliva, who is now suing the makers of EzriCare Artificial Tears.

“My client is horribly injured and now legally blind. I am currently investigating other people similarly injured by this recalled product,” Oliva’s attorney, Natasha Cortes, wrote in an email to Law&Crime. “These companies must be held accountable for the devastating consequences their product has caused to Ms. Oliva and other consumers.”

In January, the CDC warned people to stop using this product, as well as Delsam Pharma’s artificial tears, after open bottles taken from patients were found to contain potentially deadly bacteria.

Cortes, told NBC that the Floridian used EzriCare artificial tears frequently before he developed the infection.

“It (the product) does not contain preservatives, which are used to fight bacterial contamination,” the legal eagle told the News Network in an interview on Tuesday. “There are probably a lot more people who have had infections who don’t know it, like Ms Oliva was.”

According to Oliva’s suit, the 68-year-old grandmother started using EzriCare artificial tears in May last year.

Several months later, his right eye became “red, swollen and abnormally watery”. She then developed a bacterial infection that caused a corneal ulcer and deterioration in her vision.

“Given the seriousness of the infection in Ms. Oliva’s right eye, the exhaustion of treatment methods and the risk of the infection spreading systematically, creating a life-threatening condition, it has been determined that an enucleation of Ms. Oliva’s right eye was the best option to control the severe antibiotic-resistant infection,” the suit states.

“On September 1, 2022, Ms. Oliva’s right eye was surgically removed and replaced with a plastic implant. Given her reduced visual acuity of 20/200 in her remaining left eye, Ms Oliva is now legally blind.

Meanwhile, the CDC has not released any personal information about the person who died after developing the rare strain of Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

In January, the health organization warned customers to stop using EzriCare artificial tears and Delsam Pharma artificial tears after recording the rare outbreak of infections.

In February, Global Pharma – the company that owns these two products – issued a voluntary recall following a formal recommendation from the Food and Drug Administration.

However, a spokesperson for EzriCare Artificial Tears said the tests had no definitively linked the Pseudomonas aeruginosa outbreak to their products.

“Where possible, we have reached out to customers to advise them against continuing to use the product,” the company representative said.

“We also immediately contacted the CDC and FDA and indicated our willingness to cooperate with any requests they make to us.”