Rare Brain-Eating Amoeba Infects Child After Swimming in Sea of Galilee

A nine-year-old child has been admitted to intensive care in Israel after contracting a rare and deadly infection, primary amoebic meningoencephalitis (PAM), caused by the Naegleria fowleri amoeba, often called the "brain-eating amoeba." The child is in serious condition, on a ventilator, and in a medically induced coma at Rambam Hospital. Health officials believe the infection occurred after the child swam at Kursi Beach on the eastern shore of the Sea of Galilee approximately one week before hospitalization. This marks the fourth known case of Naegleria fowleri infection in Israel. Previously, a 36-year-old man died from the infection in 2022. In the summer of 2024, two other cases emerged: a 26-year-old man who died after visiting the Hof Gai water park on the Sea of Galilee, and a 10-year-old child who also visited the same park. Following those cases, the Ministry of Health temporarily closed Hof Gai and tested hundreds of visitors, though no other infections were confirmed at that time.

Naegleria fowleri is a microscopic, single-celled organism found in warm freshwater and sediments. Infection occurs when contaminated water enters the nose, allowing the amoeba to travel to the brain via the olfactory nerve. The infection is not transmitted by drinking contaminated water or from person to person. Globally, fewer than 500 cases have been recorded, with a very high fatality rate; in the U.S., only four out of 167 reported cases between 1962 and 2024 were fatal. The Israeli Ministry of Health advises against getting water up the nose while swimming in warm freshwater, especially when diving or jumping, and recommends avoiding disturbing bottom sediments. Symptoms requiring immediate medical attention include high fever, severe headache, nausea, or vomiting, potentially progressing to neck stiffness, confusion, and unusual drowsiness.

Earlier in July, the Ministry of Health had issued a temporary warning for Kursi Beach and other Sea of Galilee beaches due to unsatisfactory microbiological water quality, but this warning was lifted the following day after repeat tests. A direct link between that earlier warning and the current infection has not been established.