Louisiana resident infected with potentially fatal brain-eating infection - NOLA.com
Health officials in Louisiana have confirmed a rare and fatal brain-eating amoeba infection in a local resident. The infection was likely contracted while swimming in a local lake.
Why it matters
While extremely rare, the infection is nearly always fatal, highlighting the importance of public health awareness regarding water safety.
The Louisiana Department of Health confirmed a case of Naegleria fowleri , a brain-eating infection, in a Louisiana resident on Wednesday. The state has only had three cases since 1937.
"The resident most likely acquired the infection while swimming in Lake Claiborne, located in Claiborne Parish, shortly before illness," LDH said.
Naegleria fowleri is a naturally-occurring amoeba most often found in warm freshwater lakes, rivers, canals and ponds in the U.S.
The brain can only be infected if water containing the amoeba rushes up the nose and reaches the brain. The infection, which causes fatal brain swelling and tissue destruction, does not transfer from person-to-person or from swallowing water.
Center for Disease Control Illustration of the Naegleria fowleri amoeba.
It is extremely rare, but nearly always fatal, LDH said.
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