In May 2024, a five-year-old girl undergoing treatment for primary amoebic meningoencephalitis (PAM) died at the Government Medical College Hospital in Kozhikode.
Key points
- Primary amebic meningoencephalitis (PAM) is a rare brain infection that is caused by Naegleria fowleri or “brain-eating amoeba”.
- It is a free-living amoeba or a single-celled living organism. Naegleria fowleri lives in warm fresh water and soil around the world, and infects people when it enters the body through the nose.
- Higher temperatures of up to 115°F (46°C) are conducive to its growth and it can survive for short periods in warm environments.
- Naegleria fowleri enters the body through the nose, usually when people are swimming. It then travels up to the brain, where it destroys the brain tissue and causes swelling.
- PAM is also non-communicable. Most people with PAM die within 1 to 18 days after symptoms begin. It usually leads to coma and death after 5 days.
