Arkansas officials say person dies after brain-eating amoeba infection, likely exposed at splash pad
https://apnews.com/article/braineating-amoeba-arkansas-country-club-6b351e1bf6386247fadd2c981aedce26
https://apnews.com/article/braineating-amoeba-arkansas-country-club-6b351e1bf6386247fadd2c981aedce26
34 Comments
LennethAegis@kbin.social · 34 pts · 2y
Dang that stuff should only be in natural fresh water spots, how badly maintained was that splash pad to be infected with this?
Wahots@pawb.social · 31 pts · 2y
It can also survive in hot water heaters, it's why you should always use distilled water (or boiled water) for shit like neti pots, since the only attack surfaces that N.fowlri has is in the upper sinuses.
In reality, though, this shit is exceedlying rare, particularly in cold climates. Even in the south, it is extremely rare.
Here's a good video on it if you are interested. Once again, it is very rare, like, less than 100 people get it in a year in the US.
https://youtu.be/7OPg-ksxZ4Y?si=eTGQ2vnxR0JqwYh_
JustZ@lemmy.world · 4 pts · 2y
Even where it is found, dozens of people could swim in the same water, and only one gets it.
Pyr_Pressure@lemmy.ca · 1 pts · 2y
Doesn't it have to go up your nose or something? Direct contact with an eyeball?
They are pretty small so unless there's billions of them in the water body it's probably pretty unlikely that it actually gets to where it needs to be to infect someone.
Telodzrum@lemmy.world · 16 pts · 2y
Daisyifyoudo@lemmy.world · 22 pts · 2y
Arkansas? Brain eating amoeba? How would you even know???
AmosBurton_ThatGuy@lemmy.ca · 5 pts · 2y
"They're the same picture" š¤
MagicShel@programming.dev · 21 pts · 2y
Shouldn't a splash pad use chlorinated water? That's always been my assumption.
LEDZeppelin@lemmy.world · 29 pts · 2y
Itās Arkansas. Brain-eating bacteria are endangered species there.
gravitas_deficiency@sh.itjust.works · 3 pts · 2y
oh, you.
roguetrick@kbin.social · 19 pts · 2y
Someone's about to own a chunk of a country club for negligence. Unfortunately it's an Arkansas country club. I'd bet this was a child that died.
Edit: 16 month old boy https://www.arkansasonline.com/news/2023/sep/14/fatality-from-brain-eating-amoeba-confirmed-in-arkansas/
Chickenstalker@lemmy.world · 18 pts · 2y
Splash pad for non-Americans.
SeaJ@lemm.ee · 19 pts · 2y
Also for Americans. I had no idea what a splash pad was.
Mr_Blott@feddit.uk · 5 pts · 2y
billwashere@lemmy.world · 1 pts · 2y
tallwookie@lemm.ee · 5 pts · 2y
Cleverdawny@lemm.ee · 6 pts · 2y
It's rare, but it can sometimes happen when you get water up your nose. This is one reasons why you should use boiled water or distilled water if using one of those nasal cleansers
JTheDoc@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 2y
I guess I'll be boiling the whole lake then... Don't wanna get amoebas up my bum.
Edit: Bit weird several people need to correct this joke when it's explained only above how they entered the brain. My comment indicates I wouldn't be putting my head under water because of it.
Damn.
Cleverdawny@lemm.ee · 3 pts · 2y
Up your bum wouldn't matter, it's up your nose that does. Membrane there is thin and sometimes things can infect your brain via that route
JTheDoc@lemmy.world · 1 pts · 2y
I wasn't being too serious :)
Sharpiemarker@startrek.website · 0 pts · 2y
Excuse my ignorance, but I thought that was the whole idea behind boofing and suppositories?
SheeEttin@lemmy.world · 5 pts · 2y
As far as I know, there is no brain in your butt.
JTheDoc@lemmy.world · 1 pts · 2y
People seem pretty keen and impressed with themselves telling me! xD At least you got it was a joke.
Afrazzle@sh.itjust.works · 3 pts · 2y
That's for quickly entering the bloodstream
Cleverdawny@lemm.ee · 1 pts · 2y
I don't know what that has to do with brain amoebas
JTheDoc@lemmy.world · 1 pts · 2y
If I'm walking in a lake waist high to avoid brain amoebas, you'll get the joke.
RememberTheApollo_@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 2y
As mentioned, itās rare. You played the odds every time you jumped in, and didnāt win the amoeba lottery. Itās a lousy lottery to win. I swam in my share of lakes and rivers and survived, too.
MelonYellow@lemmy.ca · -4 pts · 2y
This is why I pretty much never jump into water - the force of it shoots the amoebas up your nose. Definitely avoid (forcefully) dunking your head in warm water.š¬
Wahots@pawb.social · 5 pts · 2y
It is exceedlying rare. You are more likely to die in a car accident or even a train accident, lol. If you are worried, just get a nose clip. The only attack surface they have is in the upper nose. You can (and probably have) been drinking water with N. Fowlri in it with no problem since you were little.
WoahWoah@lemmy.world · 1 pts · 2y
You're literally exponentially more likely to die driving to the water than from brain-eating amoeba in the water.
tsonfeir@lemm.ee · -6 pts · 2y
Let me know when those brain eating amoebas hit a blue state.
Glimpythegoblin@lemm.ee · 1 pts · 2y
Yeah fuck all of us in Arkansas I guess.
tsonfeir@lemm.ee · 0 pts · 2y
I mean, nothing personal, but yes. But donāt feel singled out. Fuck all those āhateā states.
Glimpythegoblin@lemm.ee · 1 pts · 2y
You need to go outside dude.
tsonfeir@lemm.ee · 1 pts · 2y
I leave the house daily, my dude. You need to get out of your backwater state from time to time. Expand your mind.
Glimpythegoblin@lemm.ee · 1 pts · 2y
I've been to most states, many large cities and travelled internationally. I only moved here a few years ago.
Not everywhere in the state is a backwater hellhole. I'm not happy with the politics here either, but I also dont interact with those people if I can avoid it.
tsonfeir@lemm.ee · 1 pts · 2y
Where is not a backwater hellhole?
Glimpythegoblin@lemm.ee · 1 pts · 2y
Northwest Arkansas. The Ozarks, around the Buffalo river. Great place if you love mountain biking, hiking, camping, local music, breweries.
Southern Arkansas and the Delta near Mississippi and Tennessee is the bad part.