VIDEO: Multistate outbreak of M. fortuitum linked to vaccine mishandling
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ATLANTA — Infectious Disease News spoke with Erin Blau, DNP, MSN, a CDC Epidemic Intelligence Service officer assigned to the Kentucky Department of Public Health, about how inappropriate vaccine storage and handling procedures led to a recent outbreak of injection-site Mycobacterium fortuitum infections in three states, affecting more than 100 people.
In December 2018, the Kentucky Department for Public Health received reports from a local public health department about three patients with abscesses at vaccine injection sites. The patients were vaccinated by a single provider that had administered several hundred vaccinations to workers and family members at seven company work sites.
Blau said the outbreak, which occurred during influenza season and also included patients in Indiana and Ohio, is “an example of what might occur when someone isn’t handling vaccines appropriately.”
“I think it’s really important to recognize that this is the exception and that this isn’t something that happens routinely,” Blau said.
Disclosure: Blau reports no relevant financial disclosures.