Sebastian Deleon Analysis

Sixteen-year old Sebastian DeLeon is the fourth person in 50 years to recover from a brain-eating amoeba. According to the ABC News article, published on August 23rd, 2016, Naegleria fowleri inhabits fresh water lakes and ponds. The amoeba travels up the nasal passage infecting the brain tissue and causing death in 97% cases. DeLeon was transported to the hospital after suffering from severe headaches and experiencing signs of early meningitis. After conducting spinal fluid tests, doctors were able to identify the amoeba and treat DeLeon with miletfosine, a medication shown to have promising results in eradicating Naegleria fowleri. After several days in an induced coma, DeLeon is now on his way to a full recovery.
The article focused mainly on the miraculous recovery of Sebastian DeLeon, rather than providing information on Naegleria fowleri. The article fails to address how public health officials are addressing this issue since millions of individuals are exposed to freshwater lakes and ponds every year, particularly during the summer months.
Naegleria fowleri can also thrive in warm water discharge from industrial plants, pipes, hot water heaters, and water systems (CDC, 2016a). Higher incidence of Naegleria fowleri infection occur during summer months when heat waves cause water temperatures to rise and water levels to decrease (CDC, 2016b). Naegleria fowleri enters the body by traveling along the olfactory nerve, where it begins destroying brain tissue causing swelling and death (CDC, 2016b). This destruction of the brain tissue is called primary amebic meningoencephalitis (PAM) (CDC, 2016b). Behaviors that increase the risk of infection includes submerging the head under water, any water-related activity that cause water to enter the nose, or using contaminated water to irrigate nasal sinuses (CDC,