Legionnaires’ disease is caused by a bacteria that is found in stagnant fresh water. It is a type of pneumonia and the Centers for Disease control report that five to thirty percent of patients can die from its effects. The most serious illness is called legionellosis and there is a milder, flu like illness, called Pontiac Fever. The illness was first identified after an outbreak at an American Legion convention in Philadelphia in 1976.
Rochester recently experienced one case of Legionnaires' at the St. Ann's Senior Living Facility. The patient has recovered. Both Rochester General and Strong Memorial hospitals experienced cases of this illness in 2006. An outbreak of Pontiac Fever sickened about 200 who attended a function at the Playboy Mansion in Los Angeles.
The cases of Legionnaires' are part of a national increase in the illness noted by the Centers for Disease Control in a newly released report. The CDC found that the number of reported cases increased 217 percent from 2000 through 2009, from 1,110 cases to 3,522. Increased age was determined to be a risk factor for acquiring the illness. Outbreaks in helathcare facilities are not unusual since patients there have other medical conditions that predispose them to infection.
The CDC says this about where the Legionella bacteria are found:
The bacteria grow best in warm water, like the kind found in hot tubs, cooling towers, hot water tanks, large plumbing systems, or parts of the air-conditioning systems of large buildings. They do not seem to grow in car or window air-conditioners.
Patients become infected by the bacteria by breathing in mist or vapor. The Playboy Mansion outbreak was traced to the use of a fog machine during the event. The air conditioners in large buildings, like as the hotel where Legionnaires' disease was first identified, can put the bacteria into the air from cooling towers. The illness is not spread from person to person.
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