Man infected by brain-eating amoeba in Lake of the Ozarks has died

ST. LOUIS — A man battling a rare brain infection from an amoeba in Lake of the Ozarks has died, state health officials confirmed Wednesday.

The man died Tuesday at a St. Louis area hospital. No other information was provided.

“We extend our deepest condolences to the loved ones of the patient,” read a press release by the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services.

The man was infected after water skiing at the lake during the first week of August. A laboratory confirmed the cause was Naegleria fowleri, a microscopic amoeba commonly found in warm fresh water such as lakes and ponds.

He had been hospitalized since Aug. 10. His symptoms began two days earlier, health officials said.

People are infected when water containing the parasite enters the body through the nose, usua