A five-year-old girl from Malappuram district in Kerala who had been undergoing treatment for amoebic meningoencephalitis at the Government Medical College Hospital Kozhikode has died.
Fadva, daughter of Padinjarepeediyekkal Hassan Kutty and Fasna of Moonniyur, had been under treatment at the Institute of Maternal and Child Health of the medical college hospital since May 13. She was on ventilator support for over a week.
This rare brain infection is caused by Naegleria fowleri, also called ‘brain-eating amoeba’.
Fadva had taken a bath along with relatives at the Kadalundi river near her house on May 1. Her parents took her to a paediatrician on May 10 for headache and vomiting. She again complained of vomiting and nausea on May 12 and was taken to a private hospital at Chelari. From there, she was shifted to the medical college hospital.
Four other children who reportedly took bath in the river along with her had earlier been admitted to the hospital. They have all been discharged after lab tests ruled out chances of the infection.
