The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has reported another death and even more cases linked to Pseudomonas aeruginosa, a drug-resistant strain of bacteria, found in artificial tears or eyedrops.
The bacteria strain has been found in 81 people — four of whom have died from infections, according to specimens collected between May 2022 and April 2023, according to the CDC’s most recent update.
Over 10 different brands of ophthalmic drugs were involved in these cases, the CDC said. But the most common was Ezri Care Artificial Tears, which the Food and Drug Administration warned consumers to stop purchasing in February.
California is among states reporting infections
The CDC confirmed a matching strain of Pseudomonas aeruginosa in opened bottles of the product and says it will test unopened bottles to test whether contamination occurred during manufacturing.
According to the FDA, Ezricare’s parent company, an India-based pharmaceutical provider named Global Pharma Healthcare, had failed to provide appropriate microbial testing of its over-the-counter eye product. The same was true of another of the company’s products, Delsam Pharma Artificial Eye Ointment, which the company voluntarily recalled shortly after.
The FDA said Global Pharma failed to use adequate, tamper-evident packaging and distributed the drugs without proper preservatives.
Global Pharma did not immediately respond to NPR’s request for comment.
Two additional companies, Apotex Corp. and Pharmedica USA, recalled eyedrop products in February, though products from those companies had not been linked to infections at the time.
Per the CDC’s latest update,…
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