A young Texan contracted a cerebral amoeba while swimming



[ad_1]

In Texas, a 10-year-old girl fights for a life saving life after contracting a brain amoeba and a rare disease.

Lily Avant has been in the hospital for several days and is currently in a coma caused by medical reasons, while doctors treat swelling of the brain.

Lily Avant went swimming in a river during Labor Day weekend.Wendy Scott

Before, the first contracted Naegleria fowleri, commonly called brain-eating amoeba. The amoeba is usually found in freshwater and warm soil, and Avant's family thinks she contracted it by swimming in a river during Labor Day weekend. On Sunday, September 8, she had a fever and Wendy Scott, cousin of Avant, once she was fired, told KXAS-TV, the NBC affiliate in Dallas, that she had been seen by a doctor that night.

"They checked," she says. "There were several viruses circulating around the school.It was assumed that it was a virus because the symptoms were exactly the same, so she was sent home."

Scott said that in a few days, Avant's condition had deteriorated.

"She was brought to the emergency room on Tuesday when she woke up without reacting," Scott explained. "She had her eyes open, she was there, but she did not speak, nothing."

Lily Avant was admitted to the Cook Children's Medical Center after contracting a brain amoeba.Wendy Scott

The amoeba, which enters the body through the nose and can not be swallowed, is known to cause a cerebral infection called amoebic primitive meningoencephalitis (AMP), according to the CDC. Although an amoeba itself is common, according to Texas State Department Health Services, WFP is rare and almost always fatal. There have been only five documented cases of survival.

"We average less than one a year in Texas, however, it is extremely serious and almost always fatal." Because it's so rare, we do not know why some people get sick while millions swimming in natural water plans do not do it. " ", explained a spokesman for the Texas Department of State's Health Services Agency." Because the body is common in lakes and rivers, we do not recommend to people to specifically avoid the water stretches where people have contracted the disease. "

Scott added that the family was doing their best to raise awareness about the amoeba and the potential infection.

"We thought that if the water runs, it's safe, but it's clearly not the case," explained Scott at TODAY's HUI.

According to the CDC, infected people die one to 18 days after the onset of symptoms, the median being five days. However, Before is on her seventh day of symptoms, which her family has chosen to consider as a positive sign.

The Avant family tries to stay positive and asks for prayers for their daughter, Lily.Wendy Scott

"Today is day 6. The sixth day is a miracle," Scott said Friday. "The strength of God, the community and all the prayers of Facebook (group) #LilyStrong, we are doing very well, we are really very positive."

On Saturday, Scott confirmed to TODAY that "Before" is still in a stable state.

"We are at the point where doctors have exhausted their resources," Scott said today. "Lily is still fighting, she always says loudly, we're just waiting for God to intervene and do a miracle, she's in a stable state, she's still in resuscitation, and that's where we are. need a lot of prayers. "

During a prayer vigil in front of the Cook Children's Medical Center in Fort Worth, Texas, the father of the day, John Crawson, said he still had hope. .

"We hope we can reach it in time," Crawson said. "She is a fighter, she is stronger than anyone I know."

[ad_2]

Source link