A woman in Texas died from an infection caused by a brain-eating amoeba just four days after she cleaned her sinuses with tap water.
At 71, she was otherwise healthy, and did not have known comorbidities.
She developed severe neurologic symptoms: a fever, a headache and an altered mental status,
In the hospital, she was treated for primary amebic meningoencephalitis found in her cerebrospinal fluid, caused by brain-eating amoeba Naegleria fowleri.
Despite treatment, she experienced seizures and died a few days later.
She had filled a nasal irrigation device (a neti pot) with tap water from her RV’s water system at a campsite.
The CDC pointed out that the infection usually occurs after “recreational water activities” but noted that cleaning sinuses with non-distilled water is also a risk factor for developing primary amebic meningoencephalitis.
A neti pot should always be used with sterilized or distilled water.
Sinuses are less capable of defending themselves against tap water than the digestive system.
An investigation found that the woman had not recently been exposed to fresh water but had performed the nasal irrigation using non-boiled water from the RV’s potable water faucet at least several times.
The potable water tank, the investigation found, was filled before the woman bought the RV three months ago and could have contained contaminated water from a like.
But the investigation also concluded that the municipal water system, which was connected to the potable water system and bypassed the tank, could have caused the contamination.
