Tests Find Bacteria In Products Of Mass. Pharmacy

Federal regulators say that further testing has found bacteria in products made by a Framingham pharmacy linked to the deadly fungal meningitis outbreak.

The bacteria were found in three separate batches of betamethasone, a steroid used to treat joint pain arthritis that's different from the steroid implicated in the outbreak.

It also noted bacteria in cardioplegia solution, a drug used in open heart surgeries. Earlier FDA tests had found one type of fungal contamination in the same product.

The FDA said it's uncertain about the significance of the findings. Some of the bacteria found are rarely cited as a cause of disease in humans. And no New England Compounding Center products have been tied to reports of infection from the bacteria.

But it said it reinforces concerns about sterility in NECC products.

The company had no comment on the findings.