Over 100 Israelis were sent to hospitals in northern Israel due to worrying symptoms on Thursday after a 10-year-old youth was hospitalized and a 26-year-old man died after contracting a dangerous brain-eating amoeba while swimming in a water park located in the Sea of Galilee.
Most were released to their home while nine children were hospitalized at the Ziv and Baruch Padeh Medical Centers for further inspections. The Health Ministry on Wednesday issued guidelines to hospital managers for handling cases of suspected meningitis in individuals who possibly contracted the amoeba.
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Naegleria fowleri amoeba, Sea of Galilee water park
(Photo: Shutterstock, Aviyahu Shapira)
Approximately 40 patients arrived at the Baruch Padeh Medical Center on Wednesday; 36 were discharged, and four children were admitted for further tests. No new cases of the disease have been identified so far.
The Emek Medical Center received 20 adults and children concerned about possible infection after spending time around the Sea of Galilee in recent days. According to Dr. Bibiana Hazan, head of the hospital’s infectious diseases unit, all visitors who arrived healthy and asymptomatic were examined and discharged.
The Galilee Medical Center in Nahariya saw 12 children aged 6-16 with various symptoms after they visited the Sea of Galilee. All children were examined in the pediatric emergency care department and were discharged after initial suspicion of the disease was ruled out.
The Ziv Medical Center received 19 children with mild symptoms, and five were hospitalized for further tests and monitoring. Additionally, five adults also arrived and were discharged after undergoing tests.
Rambam Health Care Campus reported a youth who had been to the Sea of Galilee arrived at the emergency room feeling unwell. Doctors saw eight children who had been to the area; some complained of fever or feeling unwell. All were discharged with no suspicion of amoebic infection.
"It’s important to know that once clinical symptoms begin, they tend to worsen. The likelihood of illness in someone who had symptoms that completely resolved a few days ago is very low," The Health Ministry’s guidelines read.
Two cases of meningoencephalitis, a rare infection caused by the Naegleria fowleri amoeba, have been diagnosed over the last three weeks. The infection is caused by an amoeba found in soil and warm freshwater. It enters the body through the nose when contaminated water is inhaled.
The amoeba then directly reaches the brain via the nose and destroys brain tissue. This is a fatal infection if detected late (with a 97% mortality rate), so early treatment is crucial when there’s suspicion of the disease.
The child hospitalized at Ziv Medical Center is the third-ever case of an amoebic infection diagnosed in Israel. The hospital reported that the child’s condition remains severe while sedated and ventilated. "The medical team continues to provide him with optimal care, and we’re all praying for his recovery," the hospital said.