RESOLVING THE LEDGER
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An 8-year-old girl in Louisiana has died after being infected by an extremely rare brain-eating amoeba that is found in warm freshwater, her family says.Lillian Smart died over the weekend after being diagnosed with an infection from Naegleria fowleri, according to Kyle Roberts, a spokesperson for her family. Health authorities describe it as a "brain-eating amoeba" that thrives in freshwater bodies around the U.S. and can shoot up the nose and cause an infection that almost always proves fatal. On average, there are fewer than 10 cases annually in the U.S."Last night Lillian ran from our arms to the arms of Jesus," her parents, Daniel and Rebecca Smart, wrote Sunday in a public post on Facebook. "The injuries to her brain were too severe for her little body to recover from. Everyone did everything they could to keep her here."The Louisiana Department of Health said last week that the state had experienced its first confirmed Naegleria fowleri infection since 2013. The department, which did not identify Smart, does not comment on individual cases or specific patients, according to spokesperson Stacey Grow."Heartbroken over the news of Lillian\u0027s passing," Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry wrote on X. The infection was likely contracted while swimming in Lake Claiborne in north Louisiana, the Louisiana Department of Health said.\u00a0The amoeba can lead to a fatal infection known as primary amebic meningoencephalitis, or PAM. Between 1937 and 2025, there have only been approximately 180 confirmed infections in the U.S., according to the health department, which added that the cases are "nearly always fatal."While the Naegleria fowleri organism is common in warm freshwater lakes, rivers, canals and ponds throughout the U.S., the infection is rare, health officials say. It occurs when water is forced up the nose and is able to cross into the brain, which can happen during\u00a0recreational freshwater activities, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says.\u00a0The amoeba becomes dangerous in water that stays over 77 degrees Fahrenheit and for years has been seen almost exclusively in the summer in the southern part of the country. A few recent cases have appeared in Maryland, Indiana and Minnesota, scientists said."The amoeba is naturally occurring, and there is no routine environmental test for Naegleria fowleri in bodies of water," the Louisiana Department of Health said.Last year, a 12-year-old boy in South Carolina also died from an infection caused by the amoeba.\u00a0To reduce the risk of infection, the\u00a0CDC\u00a0suggests holding your nose or wearing a nose clip if you are jumping or diving into freshwater or keeping your head above water in hot springs. Signs of infection include nausea, vomiting, fever, a severe headache, stiff neck, seizures, altered mental state and hallucinations.You cannot get a Naegleria fowleri infection from swallowing contaminated water or from someone else who is infected.
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