Arkansas girl attacked by brain-eating amoeba while swimming in lake, officials say

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Arkansas girl attacked by brain-eating amoeba while swimming in lake, officials say Kali Hardig, 12, is fighting for her life after she was attacked by parasite while swimming in Little Rock lake. Officials urge swimmers to take precautions. Kali Hardig/via Facebook  

Doctors have put Kali Hardig in a coma in hopes of stabilizing her after her brain was attacked by an amoeba.

 

A 12-year-old Arkansas girl is fighting for her life after being attacked by a brain-eating amoeba while swimming in a lake, officials say.

Kali Hardig fell ill after swimming at a water park earlier this month in Little Rock, and was taken to the hospital by her mother.

 

"I couldn't get her fever down. She started vomiting," Traci Hardig told the Christian Post. "She'd say her head hurt really bad. She cried, and she would just look at me and her eyes would just kind of roll."

Kali is battling primary amebic meningoencephalitis (PAM), a deadly disease caused by the amoeba.

 

 

Only one person out of 128 known cases in the U.S. has survived PAM, an official with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention told the Daily News on Tuesday. In the last 10 years, all 31 people who have contracted the disease have passed away. Twenty-eight of them were infected by recreational water and three others were infected while using contaminated tap water for nasal irrigation.

The amoeba, also known as Naegleria fowleri, "usually infects people when contaminated water enters the body through the nose," according to the CDC.

CDC Magnified 500 times, this photomicrograph of a brain tissue specimen depicts the cytoarchitectural changes associated with a free-living, Naegleria fowleri, amebic infection. 

 

"Once the amoeba enters the nose, it travels to the brain where it causes PAM, which is usually fatal," The CDC says on its website. "Infection typically occurs when people go swimming or diving in warm freshwater places, like lakes and rivers."

The first symptoms surface 1-7 days after the parasitic attack, according to the Arkansas Department of Health.

 

Kali has been put into a coma by doctors at Arkansas Children's hospital in an effort to stabilize her, according to CNN. The Willow Springs Water Park has been closed.

"Based on our ongoing investigation, the most likely source of infection is the Willow Springs Water Park," the Arkansas Department of Health said in a statement.

"There was another case of PAM possibly connected with Willow Springs in 2010. Based on the occurrence of two cases of this rare infection in association with the same body of water and the unique features of the park, the ADH has asked the owner of Willow Springs to voluntarily close the water park to ensure the health and safety of the public."

Earlier this year Florida officials warned swimmers to stay clear of stagnant water.

“Wear nose clips, hold your nose shut or keep your head out of the water when swimming, jumping or diving in any freshwater,” the Florida Department of Health said in a health alert. “Closing your nostrils may reduce your chance of becoming infected.”