Boy Treated at National Institute of Childhood Diseases Dies

Bratislava, June 17 (TASR) - An 11-year-old boy who was admitted into hospital by the National Institute of Childhood Diseases (NUDCH) in Bratislava due to an infection has died, TASR was told by spokeswoman for the institute Dana Kamenicka on Tuesday. "We are all very sorry; despite the best efforts of the doctors and all the medical staff at the National Institute of Childhood Diseases who cared for the child, the boy's life couldn't be saved," said the spokeswoman. Doctors were working with a diagnosis of naegleriasis, with the causative agent of the disease being a certain type of naegleria. Naegleriasis, or primary amoebic meningoencephalitis, is a rare disease of the central nervous system caused by the free-living amoeba Naegleria fowleri. It's an organism that is commonly found in various types of freshwater environments as well as in soil. As a precaution, the Regional Public Health Office in Nove Zamky (Nitra region) ordered the Vadas swimming pool in Sturovo (Nitra region), which the boy visited at the beginning of June, to close as of Sunday (15 June). It is not yet clear where the boy became infected, however. am/df