From Fox News: A Missouri resident died after being infected with a rare brain-eating amoeba at the Lake of the Ozarks, state health officials announced this week.
The patient, identified only as an adult from Missouri, died Tuesday at a St. Louis-area hospital, the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS) said in a news release.
Officials confirmed on Aug. 13 that the individual had contracted Naegleria fowleri, a microscopic amoeba that causes primary amebic meningoencephalitis (PAM) — a rare but nearly always fatal brain infection often referred to as “brain-eating” disease.
It is believed the victim contracted the bacteria while water-skiing just days before at the Lake of the Ozarks in central Missouri. The victim has been hospitalized in intensive care since falling ill.
The report explains that the deadly bacteria is found in warm freshwater such as lakes, rivers and ponds, and thrives in river and lake water at 80 to 115 degrees Fahrenheit, especially after storms.
A victim is infected by the amoeba when water enters the body through the nose, traveling to the brain where it destroys brain tissue, Fox News writes.
While infections are rare, it is also very deadly, and symptoms can include severe headache, fever, nausea, vomiting, stiff neck, seizures, confusion and hallucinations.
According to the CDC, between 1962 and 2024, there were 167 reported cases of PAM in the United States. Only four have survived.
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