Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2024 Apr;30(4):783-785.
doi: 10.3201/eid3004.231076.

Acanthamoeba Infection and Nasal Rinsing, United States, 1994-2022

Julia C Haston, Chelsea Serra, Erin Imada, Emalee Martin, Ibne Karim M Ali, Jennifer R Cope

Acanthamoeba Infection and Nasal Rinsing, United States, 1994-2022

Julia C Haston et al. Emerg Infect Dis. 2024 Apr.

Abstract

We describe 10 patients with nonkeratitis Acanthamoeba infection who reported performing nasal rinsing before becoming ill. All were immunocompromised, 7 had chronic sinusitis, and many used tap water for nasal rinsing. Immunocompromised persons should be educated about safe nasal rinsing to prevent free-living ameba infections.

Keywords: Acanthamoeba; United States; amebae; granulomatous amebic encephalitis; nasal rinsing; parasites; tap water.

PubMed Disclaimer

References

    1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Free living amebic infections [cited 2023 Jun 5]. https://www.cdc.gov/dpdx/freeLivingAmebic
    1. Carnt NA, Subedi D, Lim AW, Lee R, Mistry P, Badenoch PR, et al. Prevalence and seasonal variation of Acanthamoeba in domestic tap water in greater Sydney, Australia. Clin Exp Optom. 2020;103:782–6. 10.1111/cxo.13065 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Stockman LJ, Wright CJ, Visvesvara GS, Fields BS, Beach MJ. Prevalence of Acanthamoeba spp. and other free-living amoebae in household water, Ohio, USA—1990-1992. Parasitol Res. 2011;108:621–7. 10.1007/s00436-010-2120-7 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Sources of infection and risk factors [cited 2023 Jun 5]. https://www.cdc.gov/parasites/acanthamoeba/infection-sources.html
    1. Haston JC, O’Laughlin K, Matteson K, Roy S, Qvarnstrom Y, Ali IKM, Cope JR. The epidemiology and clinical features of non-keratitis Acanthamoeba infections in the United States, 1956–2020. Open Forum Infect Dis. 2023. Jan;10(1):ofac682. - PMC - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources