They came with back pain and apparently went with a dangerous hospital germ: In a medical care center in Cologne, at least 28 people were infected with dangerous bacteria after they had been injected in the back. "Within the scope of CT-guided peridural infiltration therapies, infections with a pansensitive pathogen Pseudomonas aeruginosa have occurred over a period of about two and a half weeks", quotes the "Kölner-Stadtanzeiger" the medical director of the MVZ, Michael Herbrik. A request of the SPIEGEL so far remained unanswered.
The procedure is actually considered harmless. In rare cases, however, it can lead to a so-called injection abscess, for example, if the skin of the patient is not properly disinfected and thereby pathogens can penetrate into the body. Whether this could have played a role in the current outbreak in Cologne, however, is still completely unclear.
The pathogen Pseudomonas aeruginosa is a known hospital germ that is resistant to several antibiotics. According to Robert Koch Institute, the bacterium can cause sepsis, also known as septicemia, pneumonia and urinary tract infections. According to "Kölner Stadtanzeiger" several patients who were treated in the Cologne clinic also suffered from meningitis.
84-year-old died 36 hours after injection in the back
Already in January, one patient had complications after receiving a syringe in the back. The 84-year-old died one and a half days after the procedure for multiple organ failure. The Cologne prosecutor now checks whether his death is due to an infection with Pseudomonas aeruginosa.
According to the German Society for Hospital Hygiene, this is the most serious outbreak of this pathogen in an outpatient medical institution in Europe. However, not all such cases are documented.
According to "Kölner Stadtanzeiger" the clinic has even turned on the prosecutor. Between 2 January and 1 March, 297 patients had been treated with therapy, some of them multiple. You have already been informed about the possible risks. The syringes were therefore set by five doctors. The intervention is not made for the time being.