Brain-eating amoeba claims life of 14-year-old Kerala boy, marking 3rd death in 3 months

A 14-year-old from the Kerala town of Kozhikode, who was under treatment for an infection caused by a brain-eating amoeba, lost his life on Wednesday. The infection was identified as amoebic meningoencephalitis, a rare and often fatal brain infection caused by a free-living amoeba found in contaminated water. This marked the third such death in Kerala since May.

The boy, identified as EP Mridul, died at 11:20 pm on July 3, the Kerala state health department reported on Thursday.

Mridul was a class 7 student at Farook Higher Secondary School in Kozhikode. He had been admitted to a private hospital with complaints of vomiting and headache last week. The doctors immediately diagnosed him with amoebic meningoencephalitis.

Before falling ill, he reportedly had bathed in a pond, after which officials instructed the public to avoid the pond. They also warned others who had recently taken a bath there to remain vigilant for symptoms.

This demise of the Class 7 student comes after the deaths of two other children from Malappuram and Kannur districts who also fell victim to amoebic meningoencephalitis earlier this year.

What is AMOEBIC MENINGOENCEPHALITIS 

Amoebic meningoencephalitis is a rare but severe brain infection caused by amoebae, particularly “Naegleria fowleri” and “Acanthamoeba” species. 

The amoeba, commonly referred to as the “brain-eating amoeba”, typically infects people through contaminated freshwater, entering the body via the nose and then migrating to the brain, where it feeds on nerve tissue and causes inflammation. This disease is not transmitted from human to human.
symptoms of this disease

Symptoms usually start 1-9 days after exposure and include headache, fever, nausea, vomiting, stiff neck, seizures, altered mental status, and hallucinations.

The disease progresses rapidly, often resulting in death within 1-12 days after symptoms begin.

Medical experts have stated that the infection occurs when free-living, non-parasitic amoebae bacteria enter the body through the nose from contaminated water. 

Health authorities have advised people to exercise caution against amoebic meningoencephalitis.
 
The disease was previously reported in the coastal Alappuzha district in 2017 and 2023.