Xiamen child contracts brain-eating amoeba: China News Service
According to a China News Service report, a 5-year-old girl in Xiamen, Fujian Province in southeastern China was diagnosed with a rare and often fatal brain infection caused by Naegleria fowleri, known as the "brain-eating amoeba."
The child went swimming in a hot spring on June 7 and June 14 and started experiencing symptoms of headache, mild fever and vomiting on June 22. Her condition deteriorated rapidly after hospital admission the following day. She suffered seizures, fell into a coma, and was transferred to the pediatric intensive care unit. On June 27, she tested positive for Naegleria fowleri.
Doctors from Xiamen Children's Hospital and Shanghai‘s Fudan University Children‘s Hospital conducted a multidisciplinary consultation and concluded there was little hope for recovery. The child remains in a coma.
Very rare in China, the report states fewer than 20 have been reported nationwide.
Naegleria fowleri is a microscopic amoeba which is a single-celled living organism. It can cause a rare and devastating infection of the brain called primary amebic meningoencephalitis (PAM). The amoeba is commonly found in warm freshwater such as lakes, rivers, ponds and canals.
Infections can happen when contaminated water enters the body through the nose. Once the amoeba enters the nose, it travels to the brain where it causes PAM (which destroys brain tissue) and is usually fatal. Infections usually occur when it is hot for prolonged periods of time, which results in higher water temperatures and lower water levels.
Naegleria fowleri infections are rare. Most infections occur from exposure to contaminated recreational water. Cases due to the use of neti pots and the practice of ablution have been documented.
You cannot be infected with Naegleria fowleri by drinking contaminated water and the amoeba is not found in salt water.
Initial symptoms of PAM usually start within 1 to 7 days after infection. The initial symptoms may include headache, fever, nausea, or vomiting.
Other symptoms can include stiff neck, confusion, loss of balance, seizures, and hallucinations. After the start of symptoms, the disease progresses rapidly.