Texas woman dies from brain-eating amoeba after cleaning sinuses with tap water

She moved to Texas after divorcing Florida man.

Several years ago there was a case in Louisiana of a man committing suicide by Netipot. I had never heard of Netipots or washing sinuses before that (I was in my late 40s). I was horrified. Sinus washing? Why? When you live in one of the most backward states in the Union that's full of swamps, it's a good idea to boil. Or, hell, spring for a gallon of spring water.

That’s a horrible way to go.

Fake news!

My ex used to snort 'n spew gulps of salt water up his snout in the mornings, I guess to clean out his sinuses. Not very sexy.

Yikes!

At least filter and boil it, people!

What does this say about Texas infrastructure and its water supply?

What if she'd just ingested it?

Eww

She should’ve used distilled water.

We are all going to die.

R2 You don't use spring water, you use distilled water.

Spring water is fine too; amoeba thrives in shallow, still, stagnant water that warms up quickly.

My friend got it from swimming in a large natural pond. Fell into a coma and they barely saved her life. Her IQ decreased permanently and she has trouble focusing, though.

I get so nervous if I accidentally get water up my nose when taking a shower. I immediately think I just snorted up a brain eating amoeba. Hasn’t happened yet!

Yeah, I never fell into that fad of clearing out your sinuses with the Neti pot.

Then when I heard about people dying from the brain-eating amoebas, it was a triple-nope for any future thoughts. Thank God I don't have allergies.

That "fad" has been a staple of health in India for about 2000 years, r15. Not exactly something cooked up during an EST meeting in 1970.

I have used it for bad sinus infections, which are notoriously unresponsive to antibiotics. (Many people go through round after round of antibiotics, only to fail to improve). Sometimes that is because the infection is caused by a virus, not bacteria, but also because many times antibiotics are not well-delivered to that part of the body. But it's an unpleasant process and although it brings relief, especially after a few days, it's not something I would ever consider doing year-round. The literature is full of warnings to use boiled water that has cooled, or else to use distilled water from a newly opened container. I think some people are always of the mindset that bad health outcomes are only something that other people experience.

You're supposed to use distilled water if you do this, but r7 is right that this doesn't usually happen with tap water if things are on the up and up. Article misses a chance for real journalism.

R7

The water came from her RV.

Sinus washing is very effective for sinus problems—allergies and infections.

Thankfully, they are now sold with disinfected water already in the bottle

r16 of course I realize it's been used for in India for years upon years. What I meant by "fad" was "when it became popular here in the U.S." and suddenly, NeilMed became the go-to for your Neti Pot needs. (Incidentally, NeilMed's HQ is located close to me).

Again, reiterating that I'm glad I don't have allergy issues and understand that for people that do, its popularity can/has been somewhat of a godsend to those who need it.

*used for sinus issues in India

I would never flush out my sinuses with any kind of water. Why take the risk?

I would also never swim in anything but a chlorinated pool. You can also die, or lose a limb, if you swim in the ocean with an exposed wound or cut.

R22 I hate to admit that I worry about this same thing. I know it’s rare, but I have read too often about infections that have led to multiple amputations. One story involved a person waking up in a hospital with both arms and legs amputated due to an uncontrollable infection. I can’t imagine that type of trauma.

Texas has a clean water problem because the ex slaves and the poors do not deserve socialized clean water.

This is the Las Vegas Valley Water district latest report. We get them annually.

One thing to note:

Water we draw from the Las Vegas Valley groundwater aquifer is naturally filtered, so it is simply treated with chlorine as it enters the water distribution system. We treat water drawn from Lake Mead at the Southern Nevada Water Authority’s two advanced water treatment facilities with a leading-edge combination of ozonation, filtration and chlorination. • State-of-the-art ozonation is our primary water treatment. Ozone provides a very powerful disinfectant with a superior ability to kill bacteria, Cryptosporidium and microscopic organisms that may be present. • Multistage filtration systems remove particles from the water. • Chlorine is added as water leaves treatment facilities to protect water on the way to your tap. Why do we use chlorination in Southern Nevada’s distribution systems? It’s highly effective at destroying viruses and microorganisms during treatment and it helps maintain disinfection throughout our extensive system. Additional corrosion-control efforts also help maintain water quality through Water District pipelines—all of them lead-free. HOW TO UNDERSTAND TEST RESULTS We monitored for 91 U.S. EPA-regulated contaminants in 2024; 76 of these have “primary” standards and, by law, are listed in this report if detected. We also monitored for more than 75 unregulated contaminants and for Cryptosporidium, which is required by the EPA for water systems that treat surface water. Cryptosporidium, a naturally occurring organism that can cause gastrointestinal distress, was not detected in any 2024 source (untreated) water samples.

***When it isn't as hot as Hades, I love living in Las Vegas.

Whenever I’ve used the nasal rinses the directions on the box, specifically say to boil the water first.

My partner has chronic sinus issues and Navage seems to be helping. However, the only way to use it is with distilled (or boiled) water.