Florida reported the case of a rare brain-eating amoeba that can enter the body through the nasal cavity. The Florida Department of Health has advised people to avoid tap water and have also discouraged residents to swim in lakes, ponds, and rivers. People are also being advised to avoid water-related activities this summer due to the same reason.
Naegleria fowleri, the amoeba responsible for this warning is heat-loving and is generally found in freshwater bodies and enters the human body through the nasal cavity. It is microscopic and enters in an upward motion, reaches the brain, and starts to feed on tissues. Once it destroys the tissues, it can cause death in one week, typically.
Few cases have been reported in the US and this does not spread through vapors and aerosol droplets. The common symptoms of this disease include nausea, headache, fever, vomiting, stiff neck, loss of balance, disorientation, seizures, and hallucinations.
The fatality rate of this infection is quite high (97 percent) and only a few people out of the infected ones have been able to survive. Currently, there are no tests that can be done for the identification of this amoeba in water bodies.
