North Carolina Teen Critically Ill from Brain-Eating Amoeba

A teenager from central North Carolina is critically ill after contracting a rare and often fatal infection caused by a brain-eating amoeba, state health officials announced on August 27. The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services confirmed the case of primary amebic meningoencephalitis, or PAM, caused by Naegleria fowleri, but stated the source of the exposure is under investigation and released no identifying information to protect the family's privacy. The family has since been identified through a fundraising effort. Monica Mendoza, the mother of 15-year-old Moises Ponce Mendoza, started a GoFundMe page on August 23 to help cover medical expenses. In her post, she wrote that her son began experiencing severe headaches on the night of August 21. After an initial hospital visit in Burlington, his condition deteriorated rapidly. He was taken to the emergency room at UNC Hospitals on August 23, where he was diagnosed with the infection. Mendoza wrote that her son is now in a coma as doctors fight to give him a chance to pull through.