Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala health minister Veena George on Sunday confirmed that 104 cases of amoebic encephalitis (brain fever) have been reported in the state so far, and 23 patients have died.

The state is currently battling this rare and often fatal brain infection caused by the "brain-eating amoeba" Naegleria fowleri.

Kollam and Thiruvananthapuram districts have been most affected according to estimates, while cases are also increasing in Kozhikode and Malappuram, according to officials.

"Following the Nipah outbreak in Kozhikode in 2023, it was decided and directed that all cases of encephalitis (brain fever) must be mandatorily reported and that the causes behind such cases should be identified. As a result, from 2024 onwards, encephalitis cases began to be officially repo

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