Primary amoebic meningoencephalitis (patient information)
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Primary amoebic meningoencephalitis |
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Where to find medical care for Primary amoebic meningoencephalitis? |
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Primary amoebic meningoencephalitis On the Web |
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Overview
What are the symptoms of primary amoebic meningoencephalitis?
At the beginning of the infection, the symptoms include severe frontal headache, fever, nausea and vomiting. Later on, more severe symptoms develop, including stiff neck, seizures, altered mental status, hallucinations and eventually coma.
What causes primary amoebic meningoencephalitis?
Primary amebic meningoencephalitis is caused by Naegleria fowleri, a heat-loving (thermophilic), free-living ameba (single-celled microbe), commonly found around the world in warm fresh water (like lakes, rivers, and hot springs) and soil. Humans become infected when water containing Naegleria fowleri enters the nose, usually while swimming. People do not get infected by drinking contaminated water. The ameba migrates to the brain along the olfactory nerve, through a bony plate in the skull called the cribriform plate, where it reaches the brain and begins to destroy the brain tissue. The ameba has never been shown to have spread from one person to another.
Who is at highest risk?
Diagnosis
When to seek urgent medical care?
Treatment options
Where to find medical care for Primary amoebic meningoencephalitis?
Prevention
What to expect (Outlook/Prognosis)?
Symptoms start 1-7 days (median 5 days) after swimming exposure and people die 1-12 days (median 5.3 days) after symptoms begin.