scholarly journals Community Outbreak of Legionnaires' Disease from Hospital Cooling Tower

1995 ◽  
Vol 16 (6) ◽  
pp. 339-339
Author(s):  
Gina Pugliese
Keyword(s):  
Cooling Tower ◽  
Legionnaires Disease

scholarly journals A cluster of Legionnaires' disease in Belgium linked to a cooling tower, August–September 2016: practical approach and challenges

2019 ◽  
Vol 147 ◽  
Author(s):  
N. Hammami ◽  
V. Laisnez ◽  
I. Wybo ◽  
D. Uvijn ◽  
C. Broucke ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Legionella Pneumophila ◽  
Cooling Tower ◽  
Geographical Information ◽  
Cluster Management ◽  
Respiratory Sample ◽  
Health Authorities ◽  
Public Health Authorities ◽  
Legionnaires Disease ◽  
Environmental Sample Analysis

Abstract A cluster of Legionnaires' disease (LD) with 10 confirmed, three probable and four possible cases occurred in August and September 2016 in Dendermonde, Belgium. The incidence in the district was 7 cases/100 000 population, exceeding the maximum annual incidence in the previous 5 years of 1.5/100 000. Epidemiological, environmental and geographical investigations identified a cooling tower (CT) as the most likely source. The case risk around the tower decreased with increasing distance and was highest within 5 km. Legionella pneumophila serogroup 1, ST48, was identified in a human respiratory sample but could not be matched with the environmental results. Public health authorities imposed measures to control the contamination of the CT and organised follow-up sampling. We identified obstacles encountered during the cluster investigation and formulated recommendations for improved LD cluster management, including faster coordination of teams through the outbreak control team, improved communication about clinical and environmental sample analysis, more detailed documentation of potential exposures obtained through the case questionnaire and earlier use of a geographical information tool to compare potential sources and for hypothesis generation.

scholarly journals Legionnaires' disease and the sick-building syndrome

1989 ◽  
Vol 103 (2) ◽  
pp. 285-292 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. O'Mahony ◽  
A. Lakhani ◽  
A. Stephens ◽  
J. G. Wallace ◽  
E. R. Youngs ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Legionella Pneumophila ◽  
Local Community ◽  
Cooling Tower ◽  
Case Control Study ◽  
Sick Building Syndrome ◽  
Air Conditioning System ◽  
Sick Building ◽  
Air Intake ◽  
Legionnaires Disease ◽  
Control Study

SUMMARYIn October 1985, six cases of legionnaires' disease were associated with a police headquarters building. Four were amongst staff who worked in or visited the communications wing of the headquarters and two cases occurred in the local community. A case-control study implicated the operations room of the communications wing as the main area associated with infection. This wing was air-conditioned and smoke tracer studies showed that drift from the exhaust as well as from the base of the cooling tower entered the main air-intake which serviced the air-conditioning system.Legionella pneumophilaserogroup 1 subgroup pontiac was isolated from water and sludge in the cooling tower pond. Contaminated drift from the top of the cooling tower was probably responsible for the two community cases. An additional discovery was that symptoms suggestive of the sick-building syndrome were associated with working in this wing.

A community outbreak of Legionnaires’ disease from an industrial cooling tower: Assessment of clinical features and diagnostic procedures

2007 ◽  
Vol 39 (3) ◽  
pp. 217-224 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna Hugosson ◽  
Martin Hjorth ◽  
Sverker Bernander ◽  
Berndt E. B. Claesson ◽  
Agneta Johansson ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Clinical Features ◽  
Cooling Tower ◽  
Diagnostic Procedures ◽  
Legionnaires Disease

scholarly journals Legionnaires' disease outbreak in Rome, Italy

2005 ◽  
Vol 133 (5) ◽  
pp. 853-859 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. C. ROTA ◽  
G. PONTRELLI ◽  
M. SCATURRO ◽  
A. BELLA ◽  
A. R. BELLOMO ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Legionella Pneumophila ◽  
Cooling Tower ◽  
Case Control Study ◽  
Hospital Admissions ◽  
Case Control ◽  
Phenotypic Analysis ◽  
Single Strain ◽  
Increased Risk ◽  
Legionnaires Disease ◽  
Control Study

Between August and October 2003, 15 cases of Legionnaires' disease were detected in the 9th district of Rome. To identify possible sources of Legionella exposure, a matched case-control study was conducted and environmental samples were collected. Hospital discharge records were also retrospectively analysed for the period July–November 2003, and results were compared with the same period during the previous 3 years. The case-control study revealed a significantly increased risk of disease among those frequenting a specific department store in the district (OR 9·8, 95% CI 2·1–46·0), and Legionella pneumophila was isolated from the store's cooling tower. Genotypic and phenotypic analysis of human and environmental isolates demonstrated that the cluster was caused by a single strain of L. pneumophila serogroup 1, and that the cooling tower of the store was the source of infection. The increased number of hospital admissions for microbiologically undiagnosed pneumonia during the study period may indicate that some legionellosis cases were not identified.

scholarly journals Outbreak of Legionnaires' disease in Glasgow Royal Infirmary: microbiological aspects

1986 ◽  
Vol 97 (3) ◽  
pp. 393-403 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. C. Timbury ◽  
J. R. Donaldson ◽  
A. C. McCartney ◽  
R. J. Fallon ◽  
J. D. Sleigh ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cooling Tower ◽  
Royal Infirmary ◽  
Glasgow Royal Infirmary ◽  
Source Of Infection ◽  
High Dependency ◽  
Bacteriological Investigation ◽  
Legionnaires Disease ◽  
Control And Management ◽  
Microbiological Aspects ◽  
Ventilation Systems

SUMMARYThe bacteriological investigation of an outbreak of Legionnaires' disease in Glasgow Royal Infirmary affecting 16 patients is described. Most of the patients had been treated in high-dependency areas on two floors of the hospital supplied by the same two air-conditioned ventilation systems. The source of infection was traced to contamination of a cooling tower from which a plume of spray discharged into the intake vents of the two ventilation systems. Rubber grommets within the cooling tower probably provided a nidus of infection there. The control and management of the outbreak are discussed: a policy of frankness about the course and progress of the investigations was adopted and helped to allay anxiety on the part of both staff and media.

scholarly journals Community-acquired Legionnaires' Disease in Nottingham – too many cases?

2003 ◽  
Vol 131 (3) ◽  
pp. 1097-1103 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. S. LIM ◽  
R. SLACK ◽  
A. GOODWIN ◽  
J. ROBINSON ◽  
J. V. LEE ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Water Samples ◽  
Cooling Tower ◽  
Water Systems ◽  
National Surveillance ◽  
Domestic Water ◽  
England And Wales ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Legionnaires Disease ◽  
The Mean ◽  
Surveillance Scheme

The aim of this study was to compare the incidence of community-acquired Legionnaires' Disease in Nottingham with England and Wales and to explore reasons for any difference observed. Based on data from the National Surveillance Scheme for Legionnaires' Disease (1980–1999), the rate of infection in England and Wales was 1·3 per million/year compared with 6·6 per million/year in Nottingham. Domestic water samples were obtained from 41 (95%) of 43 Nottingham cases between 1997 and 2000. In 16 (39%) cases, Legionella sp. were cultured in significant quantities. Proximity to a cooling tower was examined using a 1[ratio ]4 case-controlled analysis. No significant difference in the mean distance between place of residence to the nearest cooling tower was noted (cases 2·7 km vs. controls 2·3 km; P=0·5). These data suggest that Nottingham does have a higher rate of legionella infection compared to national figures and that home water systems are a source.

scholarly journals A model for autumn outbreaks of Legionnaires' disease associated with cooling towers, linked to system operation and size

1993 ◽  
Vol 111 (2) ◽  
pp. 287-295 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. H. Bentham ◽  
C. R. Broadbent
Keyword(s):  
Cooling Tower ◽  
Common Factors ◽  
Study Data ◽  
Causative Organism ◽  
Cooling Towers ◽  
System Operation ◽  
Legionnaires Disease ◽  
Reported Data ◽  
Community Outbreaks ◽  
Disease Community

SummaryCooling towers have been demonstrated to be amplifiers and disseminators of legionella, the causative organism of Legionnaires' disease. Community outbreaks associated with cooling towers have been reported with several common factors. Small towers (< 300 kW) have predominantly been implicated in outbreaks. Cooling tower-associated outbreaks are most frequent in autumn, and frequently implicated systems have been operated after a period of shutdown.This paper reports field study data relating system operation to legionella colonization of systems. Operating systems have been shown to be more frequently colonized by legionella than shutdown systems. In some cases operation of systems after periods of shutdown raised legionella concentrations from below detection limits to between 50 and 950 c.f.u./ml within 10 min.These data and previously reported data relating to biofilm and sediment colonization of the systems, and community outbreaks of Legionnaires' disease, have been used to develop a model explaining the seasonal nature of outbreaks associated with irregularly operated, small cooling tower systems.

An Outbreak of Legionnaires' Disease Associated with a Contaminated Air-Conditioning Cooling Tower

1980 ◽  
Vol 302 (7) ◽  
pp. 365-370 ◽  
Author(s):  
Timothy J. Dondero ◽  
Robert C. Rendtorff ◽  
George F. Mallison ◽  
R. Mark Weeks ◽  
Joe S. Levy ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Air Conditioning ◽  
Cooling Tower ◽  
Legionnaires Disease

scholarly journals Outbreak of legionnaires’ disease in Amsterdam, June-July 2006: source confirmed

2006 ◽  
Vol 11 (29) ◽  
Author(s):  
A van den Hoek ◽  
E Ijzerman ◽  
J van Steenbergen
Keyword(s):  
Cooling Tower ◽  
Office Building ◽  
City Centre ◽  
Post Office ◽  
Legionnaires Disease ◽  
June July

A cooling tower in the former Post Office building (Oosterdokskade POST CS) in the eastern part of Amsterdam’s city centre has been identified

scholarly journals Community outbreak of Legionnaires’ disease in Vic-Gurb, Spain in October and November 2005

2007 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 5-6 ◽  
Author(s):  
M R Sala ◽  
C Arias ◽  
J M Oliva ◽  
A Pedrol ◽  
P Roura ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Central Region ◽  
Legionella Pneumophila ◽  
Cooling Tower ◽  
Weather Conditions ◽  
High Humidity ◽  
Cooling Towers ◽  
Large Area ◽  
Environmental Investigation ◽  
Flat Terrain ◽  
Legionnaires Disease

This paper reports the investigation of a community-acquired outbreak of Legionnaires'; disease in the municipalities of Vic and Gurb (Central Region of Catalonia, Spain). There were 55 cases reported in October and November 2005. An epidemiological and environmental investigation was undertaken. Thirty-five case patients (64%) lived in Vic or Gurb, while 36% had visited or worked in Vic or Gurb during the 10 days before onset of symptoms, but no commonly frequented building could be identified. Water probes for culture were obtained from 30 cooling towers. In five cooling towers of two industrial settings in Gurb (plants A and B), Legionella pneumophila (Lp) serogroup 1 was present. Two Lp-1 strains were recovered from cooling towers in plants A and B. The Lp-1 strain from plant A showed a PGFE profile identical with those obtained from three patients. The exposure to Legionella pneumophila apparently occurred in a large area, since 43 of the 55 cases lived, visited or worked within a distance of 1,800 m from plant A, and six cases in a distance between 2,500 and 3,400 m. The inspections of cooling towers in plant A revealed inadequate disinfectant doses of biocide, non-existent maintenance records on weekends and wrong sample points for routine microbial check-ups. Weather conditions in October 2005 template temperature and high humidity (wind conditions are unappreciable) could have been favourable factors in this outbreak together with the flat terrain of Gurb and Vic area, explaining the extensive horizontal airborne dissemination of contaminated aerosols. The outbreak could have been prevented by proper and correct maintenance of the cooling tower at plant A.

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