Person infected with ameba who eats brain after aquatic skiing, say health officials

A resident of Missouri has been infected with a rare ameba that eats brain, possibly linked to aquatic skiing in Lake Ozarks.

The Department of Health and Senior Services of Missouri (DHSS) confirmed the infection on Wednesday.

The unidentified adult is hospitalized in an intensive care unit and is treated by meningencephalitis amebic primary (PAM), a mortal infection caused by Naegleria Fowleri, commonly known as the amoeba that eats brain.

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No other cases are suspected in the area at this time, said the health agency in the press release.

While the patient’s exposure source has not been confirmed, the DHSS reported that the patient may have been in the days before the disease.

“Recreational water users must assume that Naegleria Fowleri is present in warm fresh water in the United States; however, the infection is still very rare,” said the agency.

Naegleria Fowleri can be a risk when swimming in fresh water, since Ameba can enter through the nose.

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AMEBA is more active in the months than water temperature remains above 77F – July, August and September, according to health officials.

Human infection is very rare, with only 167 reported cases of PAM in the United States between 1962 and 2024.

Warning signals to recognize

PAM’s initial symptoms generally begin approximately five days after the exhibition, but they can be noticed before.

Early signs generally Include headachenausea, fever and/or vomiting, establishes the website of the CDC.

As the infection progresses, people can experience confusion, rigid neck, disorientation, hallucinations, seizures and coma.

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“People generally begin to feel ill from one to 12 days after exposure to water,” said Tammy Lundstrom, medical director and specialist in infectious diseases of Trinity Health in Michigan, News Digital. “The first symptoms must cause a medical evaluation, since they are also signs of bacterial meningitis“

Death can occur anywhere between one and 18 days of infection, at an average of five days.

Infection prevention

To prevent potentially fatal infections, health officials recommended taking precautions when swimming in fresh water.

“Keep your nose closed, use the clips of the nose or keep your head over the water when you participate in activities in warm fresh water bodies, especially if you jump or immerse yourself in the water,” said Missouri’s health officials.

Lundstrom reiterated that it is better to avoid immersing the head in the water when it swam in summer.

“The infection occurs when the water that houses the amoeba raises a person’s nose, usually during swimming,” he told News Digital. “It is not known why some people infect and others, even swimming partners, do not.”

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Drinking contaminated water does not present a risk, and the infection does not spread from one person to another, Lundstrom added.

Because the amoeba is on the ground, the CDCs also recommend avoiding stressing the sediment at the bottom of the lakes, ponds and rivers.

Amoebas treatment to eat brain

When a patient has been diagnosed with an amoeba that eats brain, treatment generally includes a variety of antimicotic medicationsas well as antibiotics such as rifampín and azithromycin, according to Lundstrom.

Miltefosine has been shown, a newer antifungal medicine, kills Nagleria Fowleri in laboratory tests and used to treat some surviving patients, according to CDC on their website.

“The infection occurs when the water that houses the ameba raises a person’s nose.”

“However, the effect of all these medications on real infected people due to the high mortality rate is unknown,” Lundstrom said.

Those who experience sudden headache, fever, rigid neck or vomiting, especially if they have recently been swimming in warm fresh water, should seek immediate medical attentionCDC recommends.

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Despite the high infection mortality rate, Lundstrom emphasized the rarity of cases.

“Millions of people enjoy swimming every summer, but only a few are infected,” he said.