Florida Department of Health Issues Warning on Brain-Eating Amoebas in Freshwater

Following a hot summer, the Florida Department of Health is reminding individuals active in the state's freshwater bodies to take precautions, such as wearing nose clips, to avoid infections from the brain-eating amoeba Naegleria fowleri. This amoeba, native to Florida's warm lakes and ponds, can cause primary amebic meningoencephalitis (PAM), a rare but highly fatal infection. The warning follows a recent death in Louisiana due to a Naegleria infection.