A case report of primary amebic meningoencephalitis in North Florida

Saad K Anjum; Karna Mangrola; Garrett Fitzpatrick; Kimberly Stockdale; Laura Matthias; Ibne Karim M Ali; Jennifer R Cope; Kevin O'Laughlin; Shelley Collins; Stacy G Beal; Frances M Saccoccio

doi:10.1016/j.idcr.2021.e01208

A case report of primary amebic meningoencephalitis in North Florida

IDCases. 2021 Jun 28:25:e01208. doi: 10.1016/j.idcr.2021.e01208. eCollection 2021.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Department of Pediatrics, University of Florida, 1600 SW Archer Rd, Gainesville, FL, 36210, USA.
² Department of Pathology, Immunology, and Laboratory Medicine, University of Florida, 1600 SW Archer Rd, Gainesville, FL, 32610, USA.
³ Division of Disease Control and Health Protection, Florida Department of Health, 200 Ringling Blvd, Sarasota, FL, 34237, USA.
⁴ National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases, Division of Foodborne, Waterborne and Environmental Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1600 Clifton Rd NE, Atlanta, GA, 30329, USA.
⁵ Epidemic Intelligence Service, Division of Foodborne, Waterborne, and Environmental Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1600 Clifton Rd NE, Atlanta, GA, 30329, USA.
⁶ Department of Pediatrics, Division of Hospital Medicine, University of Florida, 1600 SW Archer Rd, Gainesville, FL, 36210, USA.
⁷ Department of Pediatrics, Division of Pediatric Infectious Diseases, University of Florida, 1600 SW Archer Rd, Gainesville, FL, 36210, USA.

Abstract

Primary amebic meningoencephalitis is a rare, usually fatal disease, caused by Naegleria fowleri. This case highlights the challenging clinicopathologic diagnosis in a 13-year-old boy who swam in freshwater in northern Florida where a previous case had exposure to a body of water on the same property in 2009.

Keywords: CNS protozoal infections; Naegleria fowleri; Primary amebic meningoencephalitis.

Publication types

Case Reports