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Case Reports
. 2002 Jan;40(1):309-10.
doi: 10.1128/JCM.40.1.309-310.2002.

Primary meningoencephalitis by Naegleria fowleri: first reported case from Mangalore, South India

Shalini Shenoy  1 , Godwin Wilson, H V Prashanth, K Vidyalakshmi, B Dhanashree, R Bharath
Affiliations
Case Reports

Primary meningoencephalitis by Naegleria fowleri: first reported case from Mangalore, South India

Shalini Shenoy et al. J Clin Microbiol. 2002 Jan.

Abstract

A fatal case of primary amebic meningoencephalitis (PAM) in a 5-month-old infant is described. The disease may have been contracted during bathing. The source of water was from an artificial well. The clinical presentation, the isolation of the ameba from the cerebrospinal fluid, the poor response to amphotericin B, and the ultimate fatal outcome are all consistent with the diagnosis of PAM. On the basis of its ability to grow at temperatures above 30 degrees C, the morphology of the trophozoite, and the presence of flagellate forms, the ameba was identified as Naegleria fowleri. Pathogenic N. fowleri amebae were recovered from samples of water from the well. To our knowledge this case represents the second case of PAM in an infant in the absence of the history of swimming.

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Figures

FIG. 1.
FIG. 1.
Flagellated form of N. fowleri.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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