KOZHIKODE: Amoebic encephalitis has been reported in the district again. A three-month-old baby from Omassery undergoing treatment at Kozhikode Medical College and a youth from Annasery, have been confirmed to have infected with the disease.

Anaya, daughter of Sanoop, a resident of Anappara in Thamarassery, had died last Thursday. The child was admitted to Thamarassery Taluk Hospital with symptoms such as fever and vomiting. Later, she was taken to Kozhikode Medical College Hospital, but died. The family had come forward alleging medical negligence. Her two siblings and a classmate had sought treatment for fever. With this, amoebic encephalitis was confirmed in the test conducted at the Microbiology Lab of the Medical College.

Amoebic encephalitis is a very rare disease that occurs in people who bathe and swim into stagnant water. The disease occurs when pathogens such as Naegleria fowleri, Acanthamoeba, Sapinia, and Balamuthia vermiforma infect the brain. The amoeba enters the brain through the pores in the thin layer separating the nose and brain or through a hole in the eardrum and causes meningoencephalitis. This is a disease with a mortality rate of more than 97 percent.

Don’t bathe in water bodies
The health department has issued a cautionary advice in the area following the death of Anaya from amoebic encephalitis. People should not bathe in water bodies in Thamarassery Grama Panchayat. The restriction is due to the possibility of amoebic presence in water bodies.

A sample of water from the pond near the house where Anaya took swimming lessons two weeks ago and a sample from the project that supplies drinking water to the child's house have been collected. These will be sent for testing. The health department is also collecting information about children who previously bathed in the pool where Anaya bathed.