Primary amoebic meningoencephalitis, an infection in the brain caused by a freshwater microorganism, is the cause of death of 16-year-old Florida teenager Courtney Nash last week, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) announced today, according to Reuters. Nash and her brother and friends swam in St. Johns River in Mims, Fl. The infection is generally acquired through water up the nose, which allows the amoeba to rapidly attack the brain, causing death within a week. The CDC’s Jonathan Yoder said, according to Reuters, that of the 118 people affected by primary amoebic meningoencephalitis since 1962, 117 died.
According to FoxNews, Nash’s mother said her daughter had recently signed up to become an organ donor. FoxNews quoted Nash’s mother, PJ Nash-Ryder: "I got a call last night. They took her into surgery at 4 o'clock and by 8:30 both lungs were already transplanted. The liver, the pancreas, this morning. This morning they're performing another miracle for someone else. They're putting kidneys in and they're doing more later today."
FoxNews also reported that health officials said people who were swimming in freshwater lakes, pools and rivers may take precautions that included showering after swimming and avoiding ingesting water as much as possible.
