Naegleria Fowleri Amoeba Cases: Man Dies After Swimming in Lake Murray

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Naegleria Fowleri is known as the dreaded brain-eating amoeba because of its ability to cause a deadly brain infection called primary amebic meningoencephalitis (PAM). It is commonly found in warm bodies of freshwater like lakes and rivers, wherein the amoeba can easily infect an individual by accidental ingestion of contaminated water through the mouth or nostrils. PAM is a rare condition that is why the Oklahoma State Department of Health is worried about the possibility of an outbreak after reports of an increasing number of cases in the country this year alone.

Chron writes that according to the state's local health department, a male adult resident of Carter County in Oklahoma has died after he came into contact with the parasite during his recent swim in Lake Murray.

Health officials has announced last Wednesday that the cause of death is PAM and although this will mark as the seventh case recorded in the state since 1998, everyone is advised to take proper precautions especially as the parasite may also be lurking in under-chlorinated swimming and paddling pools.

When a person gets infected, The Ardmoreite states that initial signs may include high fever, nausea, vomiting, and headache. Once the infection progresses, the person may start to experience stiff neck, hallucinations, and seizures which could eventually lead to coma or death.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports that only 133 cases have been noted since 1962, and the yearly incidence could range from zero to eight incidences, depending on how hot the weather is. The CDC has also released its four steps to risk reduction of acquiring the deadly infection and this includes:

1. Avoidance of warm bodies of water located in highly contaminated areas like near power plants and factories.
2. Avoidance of engaging in water activities between periods when water temperature is at its highest and water level is at its lowest.
3. Avoidance of disturbing or digging up the sediments especially in shallow bodies of water.
4. Usage of nose clips or closing nose by pinching to avoid inhalation and ingestion of water.

Last June, an adult woman has been reported to have died of same causes in the country and only last Monday, the Minnesota Health Department is suspecting a teen's death to be from the same amoeba, Outbreak News Today reports.

Although it is still considered as a rare occurrence, treatment is scarce making survival almost an impossibility.