
legionnaires disease symptoms
An estimated 10,000 to 15,000 people are diagnosed with Legionnaire’s disease each year; an additional unknown number are infected with the Legionella bacterium but rarely have any symptoms. Cases have been identified throughout the United States and in several foreign countries and is believed to occur worldwide.
Legionnaires Disease Symptoms
Between 2 and 10 days after exposure, symptoms of fever, chills, and cough appear. The cough may be dry or produce sputum; some patients may also experience muscle aches, headache, fatigue, loss of appetite, and diarrhea. Symptoms in Pontiac fever usually appear within a few hours to two days.
Legionnaires’ disease can be hard to diagnose at first, as it can have many of the same symptoms of pneumonia. Signs include fever, chills, a cough and sometimes muscle aches and headaches. Chest x-rays are needed to diagnose the pneumonia. Lab tests can detect the specific bacteria that cause Legionnaires’ disease. Another illness caused by Legionella bacteria is called Pontiac Fever. It consists of fever, headache, weakness and muscle ache, and can lasts for up to 5 days, and there is no pneumonia.
Legionnaires Disease Cause
Legionnaires’ disease (and a separate variety called Pontiac fever) is caused by the bacterium Legionella pneumophila transmitted by breathing in bacteria carried in water droplets through the air. The bacteria live in water and get into air-conditioning cooling towers and circulate throughout a building. Outbreaks have occurred after persons have inhaled spray from a contaminated bacteria. water source (such as air-conditioning cooling towers, whirlpool spas, or showers) in workplaces, hospitals, or other public places.
Infection isn’t spread from one person to another, and there is no evidence of people becoming infected from auto air conditioners or household window air conditioners. Legionella can be found in many different water systems, but the bacteria reproduce best in warm, stagnant water such as is found in some plumbing systems and hot water tanks, cooling towers and condensers of large air conditioning systems, and whirlpool spas.
Legionnaires Disease Diagnosis
It is difficult to distinguish Legionnaires’ disease from other types of pneumonia by symptoms alone. Other tests are needed for diagnosis. Lab tests may show decreased kidney function; chest X-rays reveal pneumonia. A diagnosis requires special tests not normally performed on suspected cases of pneumonia: looking for bacteria in sputum, finding antigens in urine, and comparing antibody levels in two blood samples three to six weeks apart. Experienced doctors are the most important diagnostic tool, since lab tests take several days to months.
Legionnaires Disease Treatment
Erythromycin is the recommended antibiotic for Legionnaires’ disease; sometimes, rifampin may be used in severe cases. Pontiac fever does not require medication.
Legionnaires Disease Prevention
Outbreaks must be reported to the health department. The disease can be prevented by better design and maintenance of cooling towers and plumbing systems in order to limit the growth and spread of bacteria.



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