Known as the “brain-eating amoeba,” the amoeba Naegleria fowleri is responsible for severe primary amoebic meningoencephalitis. What do we know about the microorganism.
The brain-eating amoeba Source: Wikipedia
In which United States A new, dramatic case of infection out “brain-eating amoeba“, A unicellular microorganism responsible for a rare and very dangerous disease primary amoebic meningoencephalitis (PAM) or Naegleriasis. infection is deadly in which 90 percent of cases. The unfortunate patient, Caleb Z., is a young boy; often the victims of this pathogen are the very young. The Port Charlotte, Fla. teenager is currently in critical condition at Golisano’s Children’s Hospital, fighting between life and death. He contracted the amoeba while swimming in a lake at summer camp; after development strong headache and hallucinations He was taken to the hospital, where the terrible diagnosis was made. Here’s what we know about the brain-eating amoeba.
What is a brain-eating amoeba?
The brain-eating amoeba is a unicellular organism (a protist) scientifically called Naegleria fowleri. She lives all over the world and prefers those fresh water, very hot and Quietlike that of ponds and gods lakes during the summer time. Here the amoeba, which has a diameter of about twenty micrometers, is usually found in the muddy subsoil. However, when conditions become unfavorable, it can become one two-pronged shape and swim in the open water in search of a better place to survive. This is precisely the most dangerous phase of this microorganism. As per the authoritative MSD handbooks for healthcare professionals, the amoeba easily tolerates temperatures of 46ºC.
How the brain-eating amoeba contracts
The brain-eating big-flail shaped amoeba can enter our bodies through the Nose, when we swim in its natural habitat or when we put our heads under water. Once it got inside nasal cavities the microorganism can contaminate the olfactory mucosa and rise again – attracted by the favorable temperatures olfactory nerveto reach Brain through i olfactory bulb. Here it can trigger the dangerous primary amebic meningoencephalitis (PAM) or naegleriasis, characterized byinflammation and from destruction of the tissues of the central nervous system, a condition from which the startling common name of protist stems. To reduce the risk of infection, experts at the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services (NCDHHS) recommend not agitating bottom sediments when bathing in potentially contaminated warm fresh water; do not enter the water when the temperature is very high; out Don’t dip your head and from keep your nose stuffed up (also with the classic clothespin). However, in the US there are up to eight cases of infection per year among millions of people who bathe in risky conditions. So it’s an infection very rarealbeit very dangerous. The amoeba does not live in it salt water and there is no risk in swimming pools that are regularly treated with chlorine.
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What are the symptoms of a brain-eating amoeba?
Patients with primary amebic meningoencephalitis may develop “changes in smell or taste, headache, stiff neck, nausea, and vomiting,” with underlying medical conditions rapidly leading to “confusion and death,” according to the MSD manuals. Convulsions and hallucinations can also occur, as in the case of little Caleb. The symptoms can be confused with those of other diseases; the diagnosis of Naegleriasis is made by brain biopsy and lumbar puncture, with Cerebrospinal fluid analysis (or cephalorachidian).
How a brain-eating amoeba infection is treated
Given the very high mortality rate, “it is difficult to establish the best therapy for primary amebic meningoencephalitis,” the MSD manuals specify. Doctors usually treat patients with a mixture of drugs, most of the time antifungals and antibiotics; including miltefosina, amphotericina B, rifampicina, fluconazole or similar and azithromycin. Despite the known teratogenic risk (foetus malformations), miltefosine is also administered to pregnant women, precisely because of the very high mortality rate of the amoeba brain eaters.