A Texas woman died from an infection caused by a brain-eating amoeba days after cleaning her sinuses using tap water, according to a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention case report.
The woman, an otherwise healthy 71-year-old, developed “severe neurologic symptoms” including fever, headache and an altered mental status four days after she filled a nasal irrigation device with tap water from her RV’s water system at a Texas campsite, the CDC report said.
She was treated for primary amebic meningoencephalitis (PAM) — a brain infection caused by Naegleria fowleri, often referred to as the “brain-eating amoeba.” Despite treatment, the woman experienced seizures and died from the infection eight days after she developed symptoms, the agency said.
Lab tests confirmed the amoeba in the woman’s cerebrospinal fluid, according to the report.
The CDC said the infection usually occurs after “recreational water activities” but noted that cleaning sinuses with non-distilled water is also a risk factor for developing PAM.
An investigation conducted by the agency found that the woman had not recently been exposed to fresh water but had done the nasal irrigation using non-boiled water from the RV’s potable water faucet “on several occasions” before her illness.
The potable water tank, the investigation found, was filled before the woman bought the RV three months ago and could have contained contaminated water. The investigation also concluded that the municipal water system, which was connected to the potable water system and bypassed the tank, could have caused the contamination.
The agency stressed the importance of using distilled, sterilized or boiled and cooled tap water when performing nasal irrigation to reduce the risk of infection and illness.
