An 8-year-old girl has died after contracting a rare brain-eating amoeba, most likely while swimming in a lake in northern Louisiana, health officials said.
Lillian Smart, of Ruston, succumbed to an infection caused by Naegleria fowleri on Aug. 22, just one week after she was hospitalized with the illness, multiple local media outlets reported.
NTD reached out to the Louisiana Department of Health for more information, but a response was not received by publication time.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Naegleria fowleri is a microscopic organism that naturally lives in warm bodies of freshwater, such as lakes or rivers. In rare cases, it can also be found in neglected swimming pools, or other recreational waters, and contaminated tap water.
The CDC notes that people can become infected when water containing the amoeba enters the nose and reaches the brain, causing a rare and almost always fatal brain infection called primary amebic meningoencephalitis. Per the agency, fewer than 10 people develop the infection in the United States each year.
Two days later, after complaining of double vision and exhibiting uneven pupils, Lillian was taken to Willis Knighton South in Shreveport, where she was initially diagnosed with bacterial meningitis. Her mother said the family was waiting on test results to determine the type of infection.
As her condition worsened, Lillian spent her eighth birthday in the hospital.
"Last night Lillian ran from our arms to the arms of Jesus," her family penned. "Everyone did everything they could to keep her here. We are heartbroken and honestly do not know what to do next. How do we put one foot in front of the other without our girl?"
In the wake of Lillian's death, Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry took to social media to offer his condolences to her family.
In addition to her mother, Lillian is survived by her father, Daniel Smart, and three younger brothers.