Brain-eating amoeba kills 8-year-old in the US

An eight-year-old girl in Louisiana died on Saturday after contracting a rare and typically fatal brain-eating amoeba, Naegleria fowleri.

According to a report by The Guardian, the victim, Lillian Smart of Ruston, passed away just one day after her birthday. Health officials believe she contracted the parasite while swimming in Lake Claiborne.

Her family confirmed her death in a public Facebook post on the “Love for Lillian” page.

“Last night Lillian ran from our arms to the arms of Jesus,” her family wrote. “The injuries to her brain were too severe for her little body to recover from. Everyone did everything they could to keep her here. We are heartbroken and honestly do not know what to do next.”

The Louisiana Department of Health confirmed on August 19 that a resident had been infected with Naegleria fowleri. Health officials stated exposure most likely occurred at Lake Claiborne in Claiborne Parish. Local media outlets later cited family friends who identified Lillian as the patient.

Lillian had been hospitalized since August 15, according to a KNOE report.

Following her hospitalization, over two dozen businesses in Ruston showed community support by donating a portion of their sales to the Smart family.

Naegleria fowleri infections are extremely rare, with only a few cases recorded in Louisiana since 2011.

The amoeba thrives in warm freshwater environments and appears most commonly in southern US states during summer. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports, around 180 total cases in the US since 1937.

In 2023, a child in Arkansas died from the same amoeba after exposure at a country club splash pad in Little Rock.

Naegleria fowleri lives in warm lakes, rivers, and ponds nationwide. It does not survive in salt water or properly chlorinated swimming pools.

The parasite enters the body when contaminated water goes up the nose, traveling directly to the brain. It causes primary amebic meningoencephalitis, a destruction of brain tissue.

People cannot get infected by drinking contaminated water, and the parasite does not spread between humans. Experts warn that climate change is expanding the amoeba’s habitat into northern and western US states.

-SA