A man, whose identity has not been released, died after washing his face with tap water and contracting the amoeba Naegleria fowleri, known as the “brain eater”. The case happened in Florida in the United States.
The amoeba can cause a brain infection known as primary amebic meningoencephalitis (PAM), for which there is currently no effective treatment. According to US broadcaster FOX 4, the man died on February 20, three days before the Charlotte County Health Department warned the public about the infection.
Brain haemorrhage and necrosis following infection with the parasite Naegleria fowleri Image: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Eric Milbrandt, director of the SanibelCaptiva Conservation Foundation’s marine laboratory, told Fox 4 that the disease caused by Nagleria fowleri is extremely rare and can only affect people through the nose rather than ingestion.
“The amoeba is found in hot springs, in hot water, lakes and also in hot water tanks and in very rare cases in tap water,” said Milbrandt.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 29 deaths from this amoeba were recorded in the United States between 2013 and 2022. This particular case is the first in which a person has been infected with amoeba from tap water in Florida and the first case reported during the winter months in the United States, according to the CDC.
“Most cases occur in the southern states during the summer, but there is evidence that the geographic areas in which Naegleria fowleri is found in the United States may be changing due to climate change,” reads an excerpt from the Statement from the CDC. .
In August last year, health authorities in Nebraska, USA, confirmed the death of an 8yearold boy from the parasite. The suspicion is that the child became infected while swimming in the Elkhorn River a few kilometers west of the city of Omaha on August 8.