Brain-eating amoeba is killing swimmers

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The case in Louisiana was due to the man's water in his water heater having the amoeba in it. They said on my local news that is not that unusual.
Ok, great to know. :eek:

But they said the reason he was infected with the amoeba is because he put the water directly into his deep sinus area with a Netty Pot (sp???)

So, when he poured the water down his nose, the amoeba reached an area that water would normally never reach.

They said if he had not used the sinus draining pot, he most likely would never have been infected with the amoeba.

(This is going from memory from this morning's news... www.wafb.com most likely)

Very sad.
 
Kimberlyd125 said:
The case in Louisiana was due to the man's water in his water heater having the amoeba in it. They said on my local news that is not that unusual.
Ok, great to know. :eek:

But they said the reason he was infected with the amoeba is because he put the water directly into his deep sinus area with a Netty Pot (sp???)

So, when he poured the water down his nose, the amoeba reached an area that water would normally never reach.

They said if he had not used the sinus draining pot, he most likely would never have been infected with the amoeba.

(This is going from memory from this morning's news... www.wafb.com most likely)

Very sad.
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Those pots aren't some quack cure. Specialists recommend them for people with chronic sinusitis. (Not that you said otherwise, kimberly. I'm just pointing this out for people who don't know.)
 
Nova said:
Those pots aren't some quack cure. Specialists recommend them for people with chronic sinusitis. (Not that you said otherwise, kimberly. I'm just pointing this out for people who don't know.)
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I know. I've always wanted to try one. I suffer with sinus crud a lot down here in good ole Louisiana.

But I wonder if people should be told to use something else besides tap water now that we know this can happen.

Saline? Bottled water?

I know my local Walgreens sells Netty Pot solution right next to the pots. So, maybe people should be told to use that instead of tap water.
 
Kimberlyd125 said:
I know. I've always wanted to try one. I suffer with sinus crud a lot down here in good ole Louisiana.

But I wonder if people should be told to use something else besides tap water now that we know this can happen.

Saline? Bottled water?

I know my local Walgreens sells Netty Pot solution right next to the pots. So, maybe people should be told to use that instead of tap water.
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That's probably not a bad idea (and not just because of this particular amoeba). Of course one would have to heat the water. When I had a problem, I just used hot tap water, combined with shampoo, salt and baking soda.

Do you know, is that not enough to kill this amoeba?

(I also used a squeeze bulb rather than a pot, but I don't see how that makes things better if the amoeba is in the water.)
 
I've never heard of this either. I'm shocked.
 
Nova said:
That's probably not a bad idea (and not just because of this particular amoeba). Of course one would have to heat the water. When I had a problem, I just used hot tap water, combined with shampoo, salt and baking soda.

Do you know, is that not enough to kill this amoeba?

(I also used a squeeze bulb rather than a pot, but I don't see how that makes things better if the amoeba is in the water.)
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I have no idea Nova.

Perhaps you should look into the solution made specifically made for the pots.

I'd hate for something to happen to my favorite "sparring partner".
:smile:
 
Just off the top of my head but I would imagine you could use a saline solution in a netti pot.

My Husband gets saline solution prescribed to him in order to wash out his nose that way. I think he's washing his sinuses? Not sure. But he uses a bulb.
 
Kimberlyd125 said:
I have no idea Nova.

Perhaps you should look into the solution made specifically made for the pots.

I'd hate for something to happen to my favorite "sparring partner".
:smile:
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I'll check it out. But my tap water starts as cold mountain water and then travels miles through the desert before it gets to the treatment plant. I think the amoeba count is probably pretty low.

Still I appreciate the warning and I will check it out.

ETA: never mind. I checked Wiki and we've had at last one fatality in my county. It wasn't from tap water, but from a lake some distance away. Nonetheless, it is apparent that deserts aren't free of this amoeba.
 
Kat, that's kinda what I was thinking. I mean if you can squirt saline up a baby's nose I'm sure it would be fine for a Netty pot.
 
Nova said:
I'll check it out. But my tap water starts as cold mountain water and then travels miles through the desert before it gets to the treatment plant. I think the amoeba count is probably pretty low.

But I appreciate the warning and I will check it out.
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Ok, but the report on the death in Louisiana said there was no amoeba in the water they tested going into the house. It was just in the water heater.

So I would think anybody with a water heater could have it in theirs.
 
Kimberlyd125 said:
Ok, but the report on the death in Louisiana said there was no amoeba in the water they tested going into the house. It was just in the water heater.

So I would think anybody with a water heater could have it in theirs.
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That's odd. How would it get into the water heater if it wasn't in the tap water at some time? (This isn't an argument. I don't know the answer.)

Oh, and see the ETA to my post above. I spoke too soon.

The amoeba isn't found in salt water, so solutions with high salt contents may solve the problem, but I can't find a link that discusses artificial mixtures rather than ocean salt water.
 
In some of the articles it says that the young man's water system in the house showed it had amoeba. So I would wonder if somehow the water system wasn't compromised and then it found it's way into the water heater and the shower head. I read this amoeba can be found in soil too.

I looked up on how to use a netti pot and it says to use saline in it. I saw the health, indian and yoga sites suggested to use boiled water or bottled or distilled water (mayoclinic says this) which you know I would never had thought of it on my own but that makes sense. But as usual there is a plethora of DIY websites that say just use tap water (reinforces that saying "don't believe everything you read on the internet" LOL)

I knew a young lady who would make her own contact saline solution back in the late 70's because she was allergic to the preservatives in store bought solution and it wasn't made without it back then. She said that the tap water wouldn't do because of the chemicals and such, but thinking on it---there really could be anything in tap water---heavy minerals, certain bacteria that are acceptable at lower levels that are found but the water is still considered safe for consumption.

So thinking about it drinking and cooking with water is entirely different than putting it directly in your body where it can enter your bloodstream. (through the eyes, sinuses).

Interesting. I would have never thought of that. JMHO
 
What a horrible thing-- my heart goes out to all involved. Makes me think back to all the ponds and creeks I swam in growing up... scary to think about those rope swings in this context!
 
The victim, identified as 12-year-old Kali Hardig in local reports, was in critical condition Monday at Children’s Hospital in Little Rock following what the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has confirmed was exposure to the Naegleria fowleri amoeba, a rare form of parasitic meningitis associated with warm rivers, lakes and streams. The Arkansas Department of Health said that, based on its continuing investigation, the most likely source of infection was Willow Springs.

http://www.ibtimes.com/willow-sprin...cond-child-contracts-rare-brain-eating-amoeba
 
This is so sad! All she did was go swimming like everyone else. Life is too unfair.
 
I have heard of a similar situation with a woman that was using tap water in neti pot for nasal congestion.

Then I started thinking about tap water in vaporizers etc...

Wonder what strain she had...

Turns out it was 2 women!
same germ found in their plumbing.
That was in Louisiana.

http://www.livescience.com/22626-brain-eating-amoeba-neti-pots.html


Prayers for her and her loved ones....:(
Sent from my SGH-T679 using Tapatalk 2
 
This parasite scares the bejeezes out of me. I hope she pulls through.
 
Prayers for Kali... Hoping she's number 3!

The girl’s mother told local station KLRT-TV that she had made T-shirts for family and friends with the bold number “3,” beneath the word’s “Kali’s Krew,” in hopes that she will be the third person to survive the disease.
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Brain-eating amoeba survivor heads home. (AP)
A 12-year-old Arkansas girl who survived a rare and often fatal infection caused by a brain-eating amoeba went home Wednesday after being hospitalized since July.

Kali Hardig was diagnosed with a devastating infection called primary amebic meningoencephalitis after a trip to an Arkansas water park this summer.

There were 128 such infections reported in the United States between 1962 and 2012, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Before Kali, doctors could only point to one known survivor in the U.S. and another in Mexico.

During a news conference in Little Rock Wednesday, even Kali acknowledged the odds against her. "I'm lucky to be alive," she said.
---
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more at the link
 
http://www.cnn.com/2013/09/12/us/louisiana-brain-amoeba-water-supply/index.html?hpt=hp_t2

(CNN) -- Tests of a Louisiana parish's water supply confirmed the presence of a rare amoeba blamed for last month's death of a 12-year-old boy.

The state's Department of Health & Hospitals said Thursday the Naegleria fowleri amoeba, which causes a generally fatal brain infection, was found in tests of St. Bernard Parish water conducted by the federal Centers for Disease Control.

The water is safe to drink, state officials said, although they continued to caution against getting water in the nose, the route the amoeba takes.

The parish water supply came under suspicion because its chlorine levels were low. Chlorine kills the amoeba, said state Assistant Health Secretary J.T. Lane..............more......


I wouldn't use that water at all until it is cleared as safe......
 
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