India, July 23 -- A patient in South Carolina has died after being infected by a rare brain-eating amoeba, according to Prisma Health Children's Hospital-Midlands. The infection, called primary amebic meningoencephalitis (PAM), is caused by an organism known as Naegleria fowleri.
Even though the hospital did not release any specific details of the deceased, the state health officials believe that the patient was likely exposed to the amoeba while in Lake Murray. This is the first known case in South Carolina since 2016.
Dr. Anna-Kathryn Burch, a pediatric infectious disease specialist at the hospital, said these infections are extremely serious, and most people in the U.S. who get PAM do not survive. According to the CDC, PAM happens when...