Caleb Ziegelbauer and his family visited the beaches of Port Charlotte, Florida, where he came into contact with the “brain-eating” amoeba.
A 13-year-old boy ended up hospitalized and struggled for his life after coming into contact with the rare brain infection caused by the amoeba ‘Naegleria fowleri’ while bathing on a beach in Port Charlotte, Florida.
Caleb Zieglerbauer and his family visited that coastal town on July 1st and a week later the child had to be taken to hospital because he had done so. fever, headache and disorientation.
Doctors diagnosed him with primary amoebic meningoencephalitis and he was admitted to a pediatric intensive care unit, says his aunt, Katie Chiet, who created a page on the crowdfunding platform. GoFundMe to raise funds for his care.
Caleb Ziegelbauer remains intubated in a hospital, fighting for his life.
Since 10 July, the boy, a US citizen, has been treated according to the protocols of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention from the United States. For a while Caleb was intubated and sedated and then “breathed on his own for almost a week.”
However, Chiet reported this on Sunday they planned to reintubate him to take some pressure off the breathing and stimulate the recovery of the brain, which continues to show damage and It caused him to seize.
Naegleria fowleri, commonly known as “brain-eating amoeba”.
What is Naegleria fowleri or “brain-eating” amoeba?
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, this amoeba is a single-celled living microbe, called Naegleria. It lives in warm fresh water (lakes, rivers and hot springs), as well as on land, but not all these microbes are deadly, only one species affects people: Naegleria fowleri.
the parasite enters the body when water with germs passes into the nose, not at the mouth, nor when swimming or diving into a lake or river. From there it goes directly to the brain, where it destroys brain tissue, causing death in 97% of cases.
there is only one possibility If the amoeba enters through the nose but does not reach the brain, you must blow your nose before this microbe has time to extricate itself, or if the person expels the water from the nose forcefully when they take their head out of the water. If it arrives it is withering away.
In some locations in the United States, there are signs that the bacterium Naegleria fowleri exists.
The amoeba “Naegleria fowleri” causes a disease known as primary amoebic meningoencephalitis, a brain infection that causes the destruction of brain tissue and causes death on an average of five days.
Between 1962 and 2018, 145 cases of people with “brain-eating” amoeba were reported in the United States. Only four of them survived, so it is known that the infection caused by this microorganism it is highly deadly.
In the summer of 2020 another 13-year-old boy died of the same reason in Florida and a few months later the same thing happened with a surfer after swimming in a wave pool in Texas. There was also a woman who contracted it later wash your nose with tap water without the need to take a walk to the lake or river.
One of the most tragic cases occurred in Peru, where it is investigated whether a one-year-old girl was infected with the “brain-eating” amoeba. after swimming in a public swimming pool. After the bath, he felt severe headaches and after several tests he was diagnosed with encephalopathy caused by certain bacteria, which indicates the “brain-eating” amoeba.
Source: Clarin
