Brain-eating amoeba kills swimmer after likely infection while taking dip in lake

A swimmer has been killed by a rare brain-eating amoeba, which is believed to have infected them while they bathed in a US lake.

The person, who has not been identified, but hailed from the state of Georgia, died after exposure to the Naegleria fowleri organism which caused the infection.

Georgia’s Department of Public Health said the organism “destroys brain tissue, causing brain swelling and usually death”.

“The individual was likely infected while swimming in a freshwater lake or pond in Georgia,” officials added in a statement.

It is unclear exactly when they died or where they were swimming when they contracted the infection.

“Naegleria fowleri is an amoeba (single-celled living organism) that lives in soil and warm, freshwater lakes, rivers, ponds, and hot springs,” the health department said.

It cannot be found in salt water like such as the ocean, in properly treated drinking water or maintained swimming pools.

The amoeba infects people when water enters the body through the nose – typically when swimming and submerging the head underwater.

It travels through the nose to the brain, destroying its tissue and causing an infection that is almost always fatal.

Infections can also stem from people using contaminated tap water to clean their noses, with a Florida man killed in February after he rinsed his sinuses.

It cannot infect people if swallowed – even if the water is contaminated – and does not spread from person to person.

Symptoms include headaches, fever, nausea, loss of balance, disorientation, seizures and a stiff neck.

“Once symptoms start, the disease progresses rapidly and usually causes death within about five days”, the health department said.

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The deadly infection is rare, with only about three people in the US contracting it each year, according to official figures.

The Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said 29 infections were reported in the country from 2013 to 2022.

An antidote has been hard to come by given the rarity of the infection, but through a combination of drugs patients have survived after ingesting the amoeba, the CDC website outlines.

The Georgia Department of Public Health urged swimmers to “always assume there is a risk when they enter warm fresh water”.

It added: “If you choose to swim, you can reduce your risk of infection by limiting the amount of water that goes up the nose.”