St. Bernard, LA: 4 year-old dies after contracting deadly amoeba at a slip n’ slide

abcnews.go.com reported a 4-year-old child has died after he contracted a deadly amoeba that was found in the water supply of St. Bernard Parish, La. The boy died of encephalitis, swelling of the brain, as a result of contracting the Naegleria fowleri amoeba. The deadly amoeba causes primary amebic meningoencephalitis (PAM), a brain infection that leads to the destruction of brain tissue. The Naegleria is found in warm freshwater and can cause a deadly infection if inhaled through the nose. The child was playing on a slip n’slide in St. Bernard Parish when he contracted the pathogen, according to a spokesman from the Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals. Water tests found the amoeba was present in the hose used to spray the slip n’slide. Read Article