Thiruvananthapuram, May 15 (IANS): A rare brain infection -- primary amoebic meningoencephalitis ( PAM) -- has been detected in a five-year-old girl who is under treatment at the Kozhikode Medical College Hospital.

The child, who hails from Malappuram, was initially treated local but after her condition worsened, she was shifted to Kozhikode where she is on ventilator support.

Such disease-causing variety of amoeba is found in contaminated water and when it reaches the brain through the nose, it can cause serious issues.

The child reportedly took a bath in the Moonniyur lake in Malappuram.

Four family members of the child are under observation, while the district health authorities have started to identify people who took a bath in the lake in the past few days.

PAM was first reported in 2016 and since then, the state has reported five cases, the last being from Alappuzha in 2023.

The symptoms of the disease begin with headache, fever, and nausea.