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Who knew that a playful dip in water could turn out to be fatal for Woodrow Turner Bundy. The 2- year-old from Nevada, US breathed his last on July 19 after fighting an infection from brain-eating amoeba for nearly seven days. This rare brain-eating amoeba is called Naegleria fowleri. It is usually found in contaminated pools, fresh water lakes, rivers, hot springs and soil. It is so miniature in size, as amoeba usually are, that it can only be visible with a microscope.
According to Centre of Diseases Prevention Naegleria fowleri infects people when water containing the ameba enters the body through the nose. This typically happens when people go swimming, diving, or when they put their heads under fresh water, like in lakes and rivers. The amoeba then travels up the nose to the brain, destroying the brain tissue and causes a devastating infection called primary amebic meningoencephalitis (PAM).
The so-called brain-eating amoeba is a species discovered in 1965. Its formal name is Naegleria fowleri. It usually lurks in warm freshwater bodies or untreated, contaminated waters. When it finds its way inside the human body, it causes a rare, yet deadly infection and inflammation in the brain and eventually destroys the brain tissue by “eating” it. Doctors call this disease primary amebic meningoencephalitis (PAM). You can only get it when contaminated water with the brain-eating amoeba travels up your nose.
When things get severe, there may also be hallucinations, drooping eyelids, blurred vision, and loss of the sense of taste.
As far as prevention is concerned, it is advised to be in clean and hygienic surroundings. Because it is a rare brain-eating amoeba and hence, there is still research to identify the proper treatment.
According to the New York Post, Briana, Woodrow’s mother shared the heart-wrenching news via Facebook post that read, “Woodrow Turner Bundy returned victoriously to our father in heaven at 2:56 am,” she wrote. “He is my hero and I will forever be grateful to God for giving me the goodest baby boy on earth, and I am grateful to know I will have that boy in heaven someday,”
According to a post by friends of the Bundy Family, Woodrow’s parents first noticed something was awry after the boy started experiencing “flu-like symptoms” last week. His mother rushed him to the hospital, where doctors initially thought he had meningitis. The symptoms are said to be similar. It a day too late that the 2-year-old succumbed to death.
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