Use of pacifiers could lead to very sick babies, study finds

Oklahoma State University researchers report that they have found a wide range of disease-causing bacteria, fungus and mold on pacifiers that young children had been using.

In research presented at the American Society for Clinical Pathology, scientists have shown that pacifiers can also grow a slimy coating of bacterial film that alters the normal bacteria in a baby or toddler's mouth, increasing the likelihood of colic and ear infections. It gets worse, according to study author Tom Glass, a professor of forensic science, pathology and dental medicine: The same types of bacteria found on a common pacifier have been linked to cardiovascular disease, metabolic syndrome, allergies, asthma and autoimmune diseases.

HealthDay reporters Barbara Bronson Gray writes that Glass said the problems associated with pacificers are also applicable to any removable orthodontic appliance like retainers, mouth guards and dentures. Glass said his researchers were particular concerned about their findings when they discovered that "many of the bacteria growing from the used pacifiers were resistant to commonly used antibiotics such as penicillin and methicillin. The development of such resistance to certain antibiotics does not cause the organism to be more infectious than other strains that have no antibiotic resistance, but it can make the infection more difficult to treat." Glass told Gray that he does not recommend that pacifier use. use. "After doing the study, I say why take a risk?" (Read more)

Three or four more cases of fungal meningitis found in southern Pennyrile region -- two of those in Todd County

Kentucky now has five confirmed reports of fungal meningitis, and the Kentucky New Era reports that three or four have occurred in the southern Pennyrile region. The New Era's Nick Tabor writes that while no facilities in Kentucky have received the steroid responsible for the outbreak, the Centers for Disease Control confirms that the Saint Thomas Outpatient Neurosurgery Center in Nashville, Tenn., and two separate facilities in Crossville and Knoxville have distributed the steroid in injection form. All five Kentuckians who contracted the illness received medical care in Tennessee, the state reported.

The state’s Department for Public Health was notified this weekend of two cases in Todd County. One is Bill Johnson Sr., whose son ran against Rand Paul for U.S. Senate and Alison Lundergan Grimes for Kentucky Secretary of State. Carolyn Bland, director of the Trigg County Senior Center, was hospitalized Oct. 3 for meningitis, said her daughter, Beth Taylor. Eddie Lovelace, a longtime circuit judge from Clinton County, died of meningitis last month. He was being treated at St. Thomas when he died. 

As of Tuesday, health officials have reported 119 infections and 11 deaths across the nation, and six of those deaths were in Tennessee.

For the CDC’s complete list of the facilities that received the steroid, broken down by state, go here. 

Southern Kentucky circuit judge was probably the first to die in Tenn. from fungal meningitis outbreak stemming from tainted steroids

Judge Eddie C. Lovelace

The first person to die in Tennessee from the nine-state meningitis outbreak liked to bad steroids was most likely Kentucky Circuit Judge Eddie C. Lovelace of Albany, 78, who died at Vanderbilt University Medical Center Sept. 17. John Dreyzehner, Tennessee's commissioner of health, said Friday that the number of Tennesseans affected by the meningitis outbreak has now risen to 29. The number of deaths is unchanged at three. The search for more affected patients will continue "for some time," he said. Investigators haven't found evidence that the clinics or clinicians in Tennessee did anything to cause the outbreak, which has been reported in other states.

In July and August, Lovelace received three rounds of the pain-relieving steroid injections suspected of causing the outbreak of the rare disease, Joyce Lovelace, his wife of 55 years, told Adam Tamburin of The Tennessean. Representatives of the Saint Thomas Hospital Outpatient Neurosurgery Center, where he received the injections, are reported to have called Joyce Lovelace twice after his death to discuss his condition. They did not mention the outbreak, she said, nor have they confirmed that that was his cause of death.

Vanderbilt spokespeople have confirmed to the newspaper that "the first reported casualty of the outbreak was a 78-year-old man who died there on Sept. 17." Doctors told his family that his unexpected death was likely caused by a stroke, which is common among critically ill meningitis patients. His symptoms -- slurred speech, trouble walking and numbness -- are consistent with symptoms of fungal meningitis.

Lovelace had been a circuit court judge for two decades, and commonwealth's attorney and county attorney before that. “He always wanted to be known as a judge who knew the law, and he certainly was.” Joyce Lovelace said. “His career was not over. He had years yet to work.” (Read more) Democratic Gov. Steve Beshear may fill Lovelace's nonpartisan vacancy with state Sen. David Williams of Burkesville, who has been president of the Senate since Republicans took formal control of the chamber in 2000.

UPDATE, Oct. 6: The New York Times reports that nine states have reported meningitis cases connected to the steroids made by a Massachusetts company, which shipped the steroids to 14 other states. "Some doctors and clinics have turned away from major drug manufacturers and have taken their business to so-called compounding pharmacies, like New England Compounding, which mix up batches of drugs on their own, often for much lower prices than major manufacturers charge — and with little of the federal oversight of drug safety and quality that is routine for the big companies." (Read more) New England Compounding has recalled the steroids, The Tennessean reports.