India's state of Kerala fighting rise in cases of rare 'brain-eating' disease

Kerala is facing a serious public health challenge as it's seen a surge in cases of a "brain-eating" disease which has caused 19 deaths.

India's southern state of Kerala has reported around 69 cases of primary amoebic meningoencephalitis (PAM) since the beginning of this year, including 19 deaths, the state health minister told the state assembly on Wednesday.

Three of the deaths occurred in the last month, including that of a three-month-old child.

The rare but fatal form of encephalitis is caused by Naegleria fowleri, commonly known as the "brain-eating" amoeba.

It is a rare but lethal central nervous system infection caused by free-living amoebae found in freshwater, lakes and rivers, the government document showed.

"Unlike last year, we are not seeing clusters linked to a single water source. These are single, isolated cases, which has
complicated our epidemiological investigations," minister Veena George was quoted as saying by NDTV news.

Last year, the state reported 36 cases of PAM and nine deaths, NDTV said.

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The government has begun chlorinating wells, water tanks and public bathing areas, and areas where people are likely to bathe and come in contact with the amoeba, NDTV reported.

Globally, the survival rate of PAM is around 3% but because of advanced testing and diagnosis, Kerala has achieved 24%, Ms George has been quoted as saying in local media.

"Climate change raising the water temperature and the heat driving more people to recreational water use is likely to
increase the encounters with this pathogen," the government said in the document, which was published last year.

(c) Sky News 2025: India's state of Kerala fighting rise in cases of rare 'brain-eating' disease