Fatal case of Naegleria fowleri meningo-encephalitis in an infant: case report

Authors: Hebbar, Shrikiran¹; Bairy, Indira²; Bhaskaranand, Nalini¹; Upadhyaya, Santhosh¹; Sarma, Moinak Sen¹; Shetty, Anup Kumar²

Source: Annals of Tropical Paediatrics: International Child Health, Volume 25, Number 3, September 2005 , pp. 223-226(4)

Publisher: Maney Publishing

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Abstract:

Primary amoebic meningo-encephalitis (PAM) is extremely rare and is caused by Naegleria fowleri. It is ?commonly seen in older children who swim in water contaminated with Naegleria species. It is very rare to contract the illness by any other means. We report a case of PAM in an infant aged 6 months. To the best of our knowledge, only one other case of PAM in an infant has been reported from India. A high index of suspicion is required in infants who manifest similarly to pyogenic meningitis but whose CSF shows no bacterial organisms so that a wet mount of a CSF sample can be done for early detection of Naegleria fowleri infection and appropriate intervention.

Document Type: Case Report

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1179/146532805X58166

Affiliations: 1: Department of Paediatrics, Kasturba Medical College, Manipal, India 2: Department of Microbiology, Kasturba Medical College, Manipal, India

Publication date: 2005-09-01

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