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Amebic infections of the central nervous system

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Abstract

The report of death of a person from amebic meningoencephalitis, the proverbial “brain-eating ameba,” Naegleria fowleri, acquired in a state park lake in Iowa in July 2022 has once again raised the seasonal alarms about this pathogen. While exceptionally rare, its nearly universal fatality rate has panicked the public and made for good copy for the news media. This review will address free-living ameba that have been identified as causing CNS invasion in man, namely, Naegleria fowleri, Acanthamoeba species, Balamuthia mandrillaris, and Sappinia diploidea (Table 1). Of note, several Acanthamoeba spp. and Balamuthia mandrillaris may also be associated with localized extra-CNS infections in individuals who are immunocompetent and disseminated disease in immunocompromised hosts. These ameba are unique from other protozoa in that they are free-living, have no known insect vector, do not result in a human carrier state, and are typically unassociated with poor sanitation.

Table 1 Free-living ameba that have been identified as causing CNS invasion in man, namely, Naegleria fowleri, Acanthamoeba species, Balamuthia mandrillaris, and Sappinia diploidea
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Fig. 1

Source: https://www.cdc.gov/parasites/naegleria/index.html

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  1. Department of Neurology, Perelman School of Medicine, PCAM 765 South Tower, University of Pennsylvania, 3400 Convention Avenue, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA

    Joseph R. Berger

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Berger, J.R. Amebic infections of the central nervous system. J. Neurovirol. 28, 467–472 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13365-022-01096-x

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