The family of 12-year-old Jaysen Carr is speaking out about the child’s recent passing from a brain-eating amoeba.
In a new conference Tuesday in Columbia, South Carolina, Carr’s parents said they wanted to bring awareness to the rare but often fatal brain infection caused by the Naegleria fowleri organism.
The infection, called primary amebic meningoencephalitis, or PAM, occurs when water is forced up the nose and is able to cross into the brain, which can happen during recreational freshwater activities.
“This is a very tough situation,” said Clarence Carr, Jaysen’s father. “We’re doing the best that we can, but just understand, we do not want this to happen to anyone else. We’re here to raise public awareness and go from there.”
Jaysen’s mother Ebony Carr, who was wearing her son’s all-state champion headband, said the family is still in shock about what happened.
“Had we known the risk of him swimming in that lake, nobody would have ever chosen to get in. So we definitely want the public to know that there are major risks swimming in Lake Murray and any other body of water,” she said. “There needs to definitely be some awareness about it, and we don’t want his death to be in vain because had we known, he wouldn’t have been in it.”
Jaysen was the Carrs’ middle child to a younger brother and older sister, his mother added.
“He was a great big brother, great role model, and he also was very protective of his older sister as well. He truly had the gift of love, compassion, athleticism, and that big smile that everybody loved about him,” she said.
Jaysen died as a patient in Prisma Health Children’s Hospital-Midlands, a South Carolina children’s hospital. After the news of his death was announced last week, the South Carolina Department of Public Health said this was the first known case in the state since 2016.
To reduce the risk of infection, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggests holding your nose or wearing a nose clip if you are jumping or diving into freshwater or keeping your head above water in hot springs. Signs of infection include nausea, vomiting, fever, a severe headache, stiff neck, seizures, altered mental state and hallucinations.
Sara Moniuszko is a health and lifestyle reporter at CBSNews.com. Previously, she wrote for USA Today, where she was selected to help launch the newspaper’s wellness vertical. She now covers breaking and trending news for CBS News’ HealthWatch.
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