Who is Caleb Ziegelbauer? Florida teen battles for life after being infected by 'brain-eating amoeba'

Who is Caleb Ziegelbauer? Florida teen battles for life after being infected by 'brain-eating amoeba'
Caleb Ziegelbauer, 13, is fighting for his life after contracting a 'brain-eating amoeba' at Florida beach (GoFundMe)

After picking up a 'brain-eating' infection on a beach excursion, a Florida teen is now battling for his life. According to NBC, Caleb Ziegelbauer, 13, has spent over two weeks in the intensive care unit at the Golisano Children's Hospital of Southwest Florida in Fort Myers. The brain-eating bacteria, also known as Naegleria Fowleri, is thought to have been transmitted to Caleb when he and his family visited the beaches in Port Charlotte on July 1, 2022. Caleb didn't start showing symptoms until several days later. His family members posted on Facebook last week that he volunteered at the neighborhood library on July 6 and had a headache when he got home.

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The athletic teen started feeling tired the following day and developed a high fever along with neck ache. Due to the mysterious swelling in his brain, Caleb was initially diagnosed with meningitis after being brought to the emergency room where his symptoms continued to worsen. Caleb was subsequently diagnosed with the hazardous bacteria infection, which only has a 25 per cent chance of survival after doctors were able to connect the brain swelling to his trip to the beach days before. The future is uncertain for Caleb, who is characterized by his family as a bright, good-natured, compassionate, and loving youngster, despite the fact that he has made some improvement and is now breathing on his own.