15-year-old Alappuzha boy dies of rare brain infection caused by free-living amoebae

Alappuzha: Gurudutt, a 15-year-old boy died of a rare brain infection caused by free-living amoebae in the district. He is the son of Panavally residents Anil Kumar and Shalini. Gurudutt was a 10th grade student at the Sreekanteswaram higher secondary school. 

The boy is suspected to have contracted the disease after taking bath in a canal in his locality. He had been undergoing treatment at Alappuzha medical college from last Sunday. 

A case of a rare brain infection caused by a free-living amoebae living in contaminated waters was reported in the coastal district of Alappuzha in Kerala, a government release said here on Friday.

A 15-year-old native of nearby Panavalli was infected with the disease called primary amoebic meningoencephalitis, it said.

The disease was earlier reported in the Alappuzha municipality area in 2017, the health officials said.

Doctors said the human brain gets infected when the free-living, non-parasitic amoebae bacteria enter the body through the nose.

Considering the severe nature of the disease, the district health officials have advised people to avoid taking bath in contaminated water. The main symptoms of the disease are fever, headache, vomiting, and seizures.

PTI