7-year-old dies from rare brain-eating amoeba tied to California lake

A child infected with an extremely rare brain-eating amoeba while swimming in a Northern California lake died in a hospital, his family confirmed Friday. David Pruitt, 7, of Tehama County, died from primary amoebic meningoencephalitis, or PAM, on August 7, said his aunt, Crystal Hayley.

The boy was rushed to the emergency room on July 30 and then flown to UC Davis Medical Center where he was on life support with severe brain swelling, Hayley said in a fundraising site she created for the family to raise funds for his care and funeral. The infection is extremely rare, and there have only been 10 cases reported in California since 1971, the Tehama County Health Services Agency said in an August 4 news release. It said the boy was likely infected in a lake in Tehama County but didn't identify the boy or say where he got infected.