The steroid shots that have been linked to an outbreak of meningitis throughout the country are not made by the same company that supplies the medicine to Georgetown Hospital System.

Nationwide — as of Thursday afternoon — 14 people had died and 170 cases of fungal meningitis had been linked to a steroid injection used to treat back pain. The medicine in the injection was made by the New England Compounding Center in Framingham, Massachusetts. An estimated 13,000 people in 23 states could be exposed to the deadly infection, according to Reuters.

Rhonda Wilson, spokeswoman for Georgetown Hospital Systems, said the tainted medicine “has no implications for patients who have received injections for back pain at any Georgetown Hospital System hospital or facility, including Georgetown Pain Management Center in Georgetown and Waccamaw Pain Management Center in Murrells Inlet.”

Wilson said a “very thorough analysis of inventory and purchase records” was conducted and Georgetown Hospital System facilities “have never ordered nor received the recalled product from New England Compounding Center.”

Patients with ongoing concerns should contact the center or facility where the procedure was performed, Wilson said.

The Department of Health and Environmental Control said no cases of fungal meningitis have been reported in South Carolina.

The compounding company has voluntarily recalled all of its products and is cooperating with authorities.

By Scott Harper

sharper@gtowntimes.com