Amoebic infection at a glance
August 9, 2012 at 4:13AM
• Naegleria is an amoeba commonly found in warm fresh water and soil.
• Only one species infects people, Naegleria fowleri. It causes a very rare but severe and usually fatal brain infection. It can't spread from person to person.
• The amoeba enters the body through the nose, during swimming or diving.
• Thirty-two cases were reported in the United States from 2002 through 2011.
• The only previously confirmed case in Minnesota was in August 2010.
CDC and Minnesota Department of Health
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