A fourth Texan has died from fungal meningitis, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported.
The CDC has warned that anyone who has had an epidural (injection into the spine to numb part of the body) during surgery is at risk and should go to the nearest emergency room to get tested, even if they don’t have one has symptoms.
Epidurals are used in procedures like liposuction, breast augmentation, and Brazilian butt lifts, which can be more than $16,000 cheaper than in the US.
The CDC believes about 180 Americans who have traveled to clinics in Matamoros this year may be at risk and urged people to get to the nearest emergency room for evaluation as soon as possible. even if they have no symptoms.
Four Texans have died after undergoing cosmetic surgery, including liposuction, in Mexico. According to health officials, the women were treated at clinics in Matamoros, Mexico, including the River Side Surgical Center (left) and Clinica K-3 (right).
Mrs. Robinson traveled for liposuction, a BBL and breast augmentation by Dr. Luis Manuel Rivera De Anda to Mexico. In the picture she is preoperative (left) and postoperative (right)
The clinics studied are the River Side Surgical Center and Clinica K-3 in Matamoros, Mexico, both of which have since closed.
Fungal meningitis was confirmed in two of the four deaths, and two were probable, the CDC said.
One of the women, Lauren Robinson, 29, died last week after traveling to Mexico for discounted cosmetic surgery on February 27.
TikTok videos previously shared by the Texas mother-of-four suggest she contracted the deadly yeast infection after undergoing liposuction, a Brazilian butt lift (BBL) and breast surgery.
dr Luis Manuel Rivera De Anda, who is listed online as a gynecologist, performed her surgery.
His Instagram features a plethora of before and after surgery photos and promotes a $5,000 offer of full liposuction, a BBL and a breast augmentation.
It is not known if Ms Robinson’s infection had anything to do with the actions of Dr. Rivera De Anda had to do.
dr Rivera De Anda did not respond to a request for comment from DailyMail.com.
The mother-of-four was diagnosed with meningitis after her plastic surgeries, from which she eventually died
About 1.2 million US citizens travel to Mexico each year to have elective surgery at a discount, according to Medical Tourism Mexico, which touts patients can save up to 80% over a comparable procedure in the US
The map above shows the location of Matamoros where the intrusions took place. People are strongly advised not to undergo plastic surgery there
Shortly after her operation, Ms. Robinson developed a severe headache.
Her husband, Garret Robinson, told 12News: “She was doing great, the results were great, everything was fine, she started working again, then she started telling me constantly, ‘I have a headache, something’s wrong .” ‘
After visiting several hospitals in Galveston, Texas, doctors took Ms. Robinson’s spinal fluid and blood and sent it for testing.
Then she was diagnosed with meningitis.
Health authorities assume that fungal meningitis can be contracted when medical devices such as the needle used in epidural anesthesia or medications such as morphine are contaminated with fungi, or when proper infection prevention measures are not taken.
In her final weeks in hospital, Ms Robinson suffered four strokes. She is one of three American victims who died after undergoing plastic surgery in Matamoros.
Mr Robinson said: “I can’t explain how it feels to go through this and I can’t say enough to everyone, don’t do it.”
Four confirmed cases of fungal meningitis were identified in samples, according to the CDC.
Fourteen cases are suspected to have fungal meningitis — infections of the brain and spinal cord — and ten of those are probable.
Patients reported symptoms such as headache, fever, stiff neck, nausea, vomiting, confusion and sensitivity to light.
The infection causes the protective layer around the brain and spinal cord, called the meninges, to swell.
When testing for fungal meningitis, a spinal tap, also called a spinal tap, is done to collect fluid and test for meningitis in a laboratory.
Health care workers insert a needle into the patient’s lower back, near the spine, to collect the fluid.
If patients test positive for fungal meningitis, they are given antifungal medications in the hospital that they may have to take at home for several months.
If the test result is negative, patients are advised to watch for symptoms for at least four weeks after the spinal tap.
It’s possible to initially test negative and later develop meningitis, the CDC warned. That means patients should return to the emergency room if they have new or worsening symptoms.
If people remain asymptomatic, some doctors may recommend a second spinal tap about two weeks after the first to make sure no infection has developed.
An update from the Texas Department of State Health Services states, “Fungal meningitis can be life-threatening, and early detection of infection is important to treatment.”
“Public health workers are directly contacting people in Texas who have undergone surgery at two Matamoros clinics to update them on the situation and the steps to be taken.”
CDC officials are investigating exactly how patients were exposed to the infectious fungus during surgeries and whether other clinics were involved.
US health bosses have demanded that the World Health Organization declare the deadly fungal outbreak an international public health emergency.
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