(USA TODAY) -- An Oklahoma resident infected with a rare brain-eating amoeba while swimming in a lake died this week, according to Oklahoma health officials.
The unidentified person was infected with primary amebic meningoencephalitis, known as PAM, a severe brain infection caused by an amoeba calledNaegleria fowleri, the Oklahoma State Department of Health said in a statement. The infection occurred during a swim in Lake Murray, located in Ardmore, Okla., near the Texas border.
Officials did not disclose when the swimmer was infected or what day the person died this week.
Naegleria fowleri infections are rare, with only seven cases occurring in Oklahoma since 1998, according to the department of health. The disease-causing organism is found in fresh bodies of water and typically thrives in the warm summer months. Infections are usually found in southern and southwestern states, though two people have died from the organism as far north as Minnesota, according to the Minnesota Department of Health.
Naegleria fowleri symptoms typically mirror bacterial meningitis, starting with fever, chills, headaches and a stiff neck, Jessica Sheehy, a physician assistant and infectious diseases specialist at Mayo Clinic Health System, told USA TODAY Network last month.
