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…
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 new study by a team at Virginia Tech has linked the outbreak of Legionnaires’ disease in Flint, MI to the city’s decision to switch its water supply. Flint suffered a surge in cases of Legionnaires’ disease from 2014 to 2015, with nearly 100 people sickened and 12 deaths. The death toll could have been higher, as Legionnaires’ disease often masquerades as pneumonia and goes unreported. Health officials assumed that the city’s decision to switch its water supply from Lake Huron to the Flint River was to blame, but no tests were done at the time of the outbreak. (An…
More cases of Legionnaires’ disease have been reported at an Illinois veterans’ home. The facility has been trying to prevent Legionella infection since an outbreak last August during which 54 people were sickened and 12 died. On Tuesday, the Illinois Department of Veterans’ Affairs revealed two cases of Legionnaires’ disease that originated at the Quincy Illinois Veterans’ Home. Health officials said that the patients contracted the disease from separate buildings. The patients were treated at a hospital and are now recovering in the veterans’ home. These new cases come at a difficult time for the Quincy facility, which recently refurbished…
Legionella bacteria in the water supply of the Allegheny General Hospital in Pittsburgh likely caused a cancer patient to contract Legionnaires’ disease. Officials previously believed that the patient, now recovered, had contracted the illness elsewhere, but new tests show that the bacteria originated in the hospital. After a cancer patient who had previously been treated at the hospital was readmitted with respiratory problems at the end of May, doctors tested the patient for Legionnaires’ disease. (Click here for our original blog post on this story.) The test was positive, and the patient was treated and made a full recovery. At the…
A recent investigation into a pneumonia death in Flint has demonstrated the need for hospitals to release Legionella test results and for diligent testing of patients at risk for Legionnaires’ disease. In a June 28 article for Bridge Magazine, Chastity Pratt Dawsey reports on the case of Bertie Marble. Mrs. Marble, a 68-year-old resident of Flint, Michigan, passed away in March 2015 after a spell of ill health. During her final stay at McLaren Regional Medical Center in Flint, Mrs. Marble was diagnosed with “healthcare-associated pneumonia”. McLaren had found Legionella bacteria in its water system in late 2014 but had not revealed…