IDEXX Laboratories world campus in Westbrook, Maine IDEXX Laboratories, Inc., has developed an innovative water test called Legiolert™ to detect the presence of Legionella pneumophila in water sources, such as drinking water. This detection system can accurately depict the presence of Legionella pneumophila in potable water systems in seven days, as opposed to up to fourteen days using the customary culture methods of detecting the bacteria. Legiolert™ allows testers to skip steps of the usual testing procedures, such as colony counting and confirmation, which saves valuable laboratory time and reduces both the need for training and the risk of interpretation errors. Legionella pneumophila is the primary source of…
A Lockheed Martin plant in Marietta, GA has been dealing with a possible outbreak of Legionnaires’ disease. Two plant workers were recently diagnosed with the disease Administrators circulated an internal memo on July 28 stating that Legionella experts had conducted initial tests for the bacteria; these tests turned out negative. The company states that it plans to continue testing at the facility and to make changes to its water treatment system. These two cases are the first in Marietta to be linked to a single location, but now some former workers who contracted the disease are coming forward with their stories.…
The Allegheny General Hospital in Pittsburgh, PA is exploring options to eliminate Legionella bacteria from its water supply. The hospital found the bacteria in two water tanks earlier this year, and has since taken steps to keep patients safe. Hospital officials shut down sources of drinking water in several floors of its main inpatient facility after Legionella cultures were positive, and it increased the frequency of testing in high-risk units. The hospital has now largely returned to its normal water treatment system, though officials are continuing to test drinking water and are considering an overhaul of the existing water treatment system. The…
Michigan’s Attorney General Bill Schuette has provided more information about an investigation into an outbreak of Legionnaires’ disease in Flint. The media storm surrounding cases of lead poisoning in the city at first overlooked Legionnaires’ disease, but recent probes have brought the outbreak to the public’s attention. Aging city infrastructure, combined with a water supply that may have been contaminated with Legionella bacteria, led to the outbreak that claimed at least 12 lives last year in the embattled city. The Attorney General’s office has been pursuing this investigation for two months. It has now announced that the investigation may lead…
Officials have confirmed a third case of Legionnaires’ disease at Illinois Veterans’ Home in Quincy, IL. This confirmation comes less than a month after the opening of a new water system at the home. The status of the third patient is unknown. The Quincy home has experienced problems with Legionnaires’ disease in the past. Last year, 53 people contracted Legionnaires’ disease and 12 died in an outbreak, prompting officials to replace the home’s water system. The new water system cost nearly $5 million and was designed to combat the spread of bacteria by heating and chlorinating water in individual buildings…
Analysts expect the global market for Legionella testing to grow considerably over the next several years. As property owners and businesses become aware of the value of testing their water systems for Legionella, demand for testing products and water experts should increase. Public health initiatives and the widespread publicity of cases like the Bronx outbreak and the Flint water crisis have increased awareness of the risks of Legionnaires’ disease in the popular mind. As doctors and patients become more aware that diagnoses of pneumonia and colds might be concealing the presence of Legionella, advancements in testing will drive up the demand…
Regulations that require managers to test cooling towers in New York City have gone into effect as of July 6, 2016. After last year’s deadly South Bronx outbreak, in which 138 residents were sickened and 16 died, investigators determined that a contaminated cooling tower was the source of Legionella bacteria. Emergency regulations were passed requiring property owners to register their buildings and perform tests for Legionella. These temporary measures calmed public concern and created a list of cooling towers in the Bronx area, which will be used by investigators in the future. Now these measures have been made permanent, and the New…
The continuing saga of Legionella at the Golden Sands Condominium advanced this week when recent tests showed the presence of the bacteria in the water once again. After two guests contracted Legionnaires’ disease at the Maryland facility last November, management launched a treatment plan and disinfected the building’s water system with chlorine. Subsequent tests indicated that the bacteria was under control. At the end of June, however, two more guests of the condo contracted Legionnaires’. As required by the local health department, management began to conduct biweekly tests of the building and alerted tenants of the risk. The results of…
A pair of Legionnaires’ disease cases seem to have originated at the same apartment complex in Harlem. Two individuals who spent time at the Savoy Park Apartments on W 139th Street have been diagnosed with the disease over the past ten months; both have since recovered Investigators say that these cases should not be considered as part of an outbreak. Still, the city’s health department has been proactive in its response. These cases come in the wake of the deadly August 2015 outbreak of Legionnaires’ in the south Bronx, and health officials are on high alert. Once an investigation was…