Health officials in Kansas confirmed that the death of a nine-year-old girl from Spring Hill was due to a very rare brain-eating amoeba called Naegleria fowleri, which can be contracted from warm freshwater environments such as hot springs, rivers and lakes.
The victim identified as Hally “Bug” Nicole Yust died on Wednesday, following complaints of symptoms associated to meningitis. She was diagnosed to have contracted a primary amoebic meningoencephalitis, a fatal infection that originates from the brain-eating amoeba.
Various reports say Yust, who loves water sports, has been going for a swim for the past seven to 14 days in several bodies of water, which makes it difficult for health officials to identify where in particular she got the infection. Her family lives by the Hillsdale Lake.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says the rare amoeba is said to grow at higher temperatures, which signifies that the risk is higher in the summer. The infection is also considered to commonly appear in rivers and lakes in the southern states, specifically in Texas and Florida.
“The amoeba goes up through the nose and into the brain and once it’s there, there’s really nothing anybody can do,” Tiffany Geiger, investigator at the Johnson County Health Department, said.
In the U.S., fewer than 200 incidents were reported in the last five decades, says research. First case of its kind was reported to have occurred sometime in 2011. Yust is the second case known to Kansas.
“There’s only been one case that actually lived through this. All the other cases have passed away,” said Geiger.
To help minimize the possible risk of such infection, health officials reminded the public of observing precautionary measures when in fresh waters.
"It is important for the public to know that infections like these are extremely rare and there are precautions one can take to lower their risk - such as nose plugs,” Robert Moser, MD, secretary and state health officer of Kansas Department of Health and Environment, said in a statement.
Yust’s family underscored that it is an extremely rare case.
"You're more likely to die from drowning than you are ever from this organism. It's like one in a billion. This girl was a one in a billion. There's a reason that God picked her and I'm still trying to figure that out, but once I do, watch out; It's going to be great," said Shon Yust, the girl’s father.
Kansas Department of Health and Environment says symptoms of Naegleria fowleri infection appear between one and seven days, typically around five days, after an infection. Symptoms include fever, nausea, headache, vomiting, confusion, stiff neck, seizures, hallucinations, loss of bodily control and balance and lack of attention to people and things.
