Loading…
An 8-year-old girl from Ruston, Louisiana, has died after contracting a rare brain-eating amoeba, Naegleria fowleri, likely while swimming in Lake Claiborne. Lillian Smart died over the weekend, shortly after her eighth birthday, her family announced on Facebook. The Louisiana Department of Health confirmed the state's first infection since 2013, though it did not identify the patient.
Naegleria fowleri thrives in warm freshwater and can cause primary amebic meningoencephalitis when contaminated water enters the nose and the amoeba travels to the brain. The infection is "extremely rare, but nearly always fatal," according to the health department. Only about 180 cases have been confirmed in the U.S. since 1937, with fewer than 10 annually on average. The amoeba cannot spread from person to person and is not contracted by swallowing water.
Lillian had been hospitalized since August 15 after a fever progressed to double vision. More than two dozen Ruston businesses held a fundraiser to support the family, and residents remembered her as "always a happy child." Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry expressed heartbreak over her passing.
While most cases have occurred in southern states, experts say climate change is warming waters in northern and midwestern states, potentially expanding the amoeba's range. Recent cases have appeared in Maryland, Indiana, and Minnesota.