She was under treatment at the Institute of Maternal and Child Health of the Kozhikode Medical College Hospital.
Naegleria fowleri infects people by entering the body through the nose, usually while swimming. The amoeba travels up the nose to the brain where it destroys the brain tissue and causes swelling of the brain. (Creative Commons)
Fadwa, a five-year-old girl being treated at Kerala’s Government Medical College Hospital Kozhikode for amoebic meningoencephalitis — a rare brain infection caused by Naegleria fowleri —passed away on Monday, 20 May. She exhibited symptoms after a brief swim in a river. Naegleria fowleri enters the body through the nose, usually while swimming, travels to the brain and destroys brain tissue.