Using RV Water for Nasal Irrigation Was Fatal Mistake

A Texas woman died from the rare brain-eating amoeba Naegleria fowleri after using contaminated water from an RV for nasal irrigation, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In its Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, the CDC says the previously healthy 71-year-old "developed severe neurologic symptoms including fever, headache, and altered mental status" within four days of using a nasal irrigation device filled with tap water from an RV's system at a campground in Texas. She died eight days after the symptoms began, despite treatment for primary amebic meningoencephalitis, or PAM.

The CDC says the amoeba was found in the woman's cerebrospinal fluid, WJW reports. Such infections are rare, but almost always fatal. Unlike most patients, the woman had no recreational exposure to fresh water, the CDC says. Investigators were unable to determine whether the source of the infection was the RV's potable water tank—which "had been filled with water collected on an unknown date before the patient's purchase of the RV 3 months earlier"—or the municipal water system it was connected to at the campground.

"This case reinforces the potential for serious health risks associated with improper use of nasal irrigation devices, as well as the importance of maintaining RV water quality and ensuring that municipal water systems adhere to regulatory standards," the CDC says. "Following recommended nasal irrigation practices, which include using distilled, sterilized, or boiled and cooled tap water for nasal irrigation, is critical to reducing the risk for illness." (More brain-eating amoeba stories.)