A 10-month-old child infected with a “brain-eating” amoeba is being treated at Children’s Hospital 1 in Ho Chi Minh City. This rare disease can lead to death in 95% of cases.
On May 31, Associate Professor, Doctor Phung Nguyen The Nguyen, Head of the Department of Infectious Resuscitation, Children's Hospital 1, said that the child was admitted to the hospital with symptoms of high fever, vomiting a lot and lethargy.
About 8 hours later, the child had multiple generalized seizures with impaired consciousness and was intubated. The patient progressed to a deep coma, unresponsive to stimulation, and brain ultrasound and cranial computed tomography showed acute ventricular dilatation. Tests for infection increased, cerebrospinal fluid was cloudy yellow, and routine culture tests for pathogens in blood and cerebrospinal fluid were negative.
The treatment team decided to perform a multi-agent PCR in the cerebrospinal fluid and identified the parasite Naegleria fowleri with a very high number of copies ( 3.3x107 copies). The results of the wet mount also confirmed the presence of “brain-eating” amoeba in the patient’s cerebrospinal fluid sample.
According to Dr. Phung Nguyen The Nguyen, this is a rare disease, with very few cases worldwide. The child is still being actively treated with mechanical ventilation, external ventricular drainage to reduce intracranial pressure, anti-cerebral edema, broad-spectrum antibiotics and drugs recommended by the US CDC (including Fluconazole, Amphotericin B, Rifampicin, Azithromycin and Dexamethasone). However, the child's condition is still very serious.
The amoeba Naegleria fowleri is a single-celled parasite belonging to the pseudopod class and is the only Naegleria species that causes disease in humans. They are often found in warm freshwater areas such as ponds, lakes, rivers, hot springs, and moist soil. The amoeba enters the human brain through the nasal mucosa. Doctors recommend that to prevent the risk of infection, people should use clean water sources and limit living and bathing in places with dirty water sources.
People infected with this amoeba may experience headaches, fever, nausea and vomiting, and the disease progresses rapidly. Most people fall into a coma and die within 1 to 18 days after symptoms begin. Diagnosis in the early stages is difficult.
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Source: https://www.sggp.org.vn/benh-nhi-nhiem-amop-an-nao-hiem-gap-hon-me-sau-post742434.html
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