Kollam reports first case of primary amoebic meningoencephalitis, 10-year-old boy admitted | Onmanorama news

A 10-year-old boy from Nadutheri, Thalavoor in Kollam was confirmed to have primary amebic meningoencephalitis (PAM). He is currently admitted to SAT Hospital in Thiruvananthapuram. This is the first case of PAM in Kollam.

The District Rapid Response Team (RRT) will convene a meeting on Monday at 10 am. Health officials said the boy was initially taken to a hospital in Kollam with fever, headache and vomiting. County health officials are investigating whether the boy was exposed to a contaminated water source. Field investigations were initiated in the area surrounding the patient’s residence.
The state has reported over 20 cases of PAM so far.

Patients with PAM typically have swum, dived, bathed, or played in warm, generally stagnant freshwater within the past 1 to 9 days, according to state health department technical guidelines. In rare cases, patients with PAM may experience smell or taste disorders.

Most of the time, the symptoms of PAM are indistinguishable from those of acute bacterial meningitis. The acute onset of PAM occurs over a period of hours to 1-2 days. The neuro-olfactory pathway allows Naegleria fowleri, the causative agent of PAM, rapid access to the brain and leads to impairment of the adaptive immune response, leading to a very rapid progression of the disease, according to the guidelines

Ten people undergoing treatment for amoebic meningoencephalitis were discharged from the Thiruvananthapuram Medical College in the second week of September. Those diagnosed with the disease had contact with contaminated water that contained free-living amoebas.