New guidelines will help keep Legionnaires' at bay
Legionnaires' disease rarely makes the headlines here but seven people have died from the infection between 2000 and 2008. There was a well-publicised outbreak last year in a Dublin office and a number of people were infected but recovered. New guidelines have now been issued to control the disease, following 12 reported cases last year.
Legionnaires' disease rarely makes the headlines here but seven people have died from the infection between 2000 and 2008. There was a well-publicised outbreak last year in a Dublin office and a number of people were infected but recovered. New guidelines have now been issued to control the disease, following 12 reported cases last year.
Legionella bacteria is commonly found in sources of water, such as rivers and lakes. It can find its way into artificial water supply systems, such as air-conditioning apparatus, hot and cold water services, and cooling towers.
If it has the right conditions the bacteria can rapidly spread, contaminating these water systems. People are at risk if they breath in small droplets of contaminated water.
Large buildings such as hotels, hospitals, museums and office blocks are more vulnerable to legionella contamination because they have larger, more complex water supply systems in which legionella can quickly spread, said a new report from the Health Protection Surveillance Centre.
It pointed out the real number of cases of Legionnaires' disease may be much higher than the reported numbers because people can end up with mild symptoms. It can be misdiagnosed with more common forms of pneumonia and so these cases may not be reported to the health authorities.
"In particularly vulnerable people, such as the elderly or people with a pre-existing health condition, Legionnaire's disease can be very serious. Prompt treatment using antibiotics is essential."
There have been 79 cases reported here between 2000 and 2008, most of those infected were men. The majority picked it up abroad but 29 were infected in the community and five in hospital.
The average age of those infected was 50 years but some were as young as 18 years and another was 82. The peak month for notification was September.
Symptoms usually begin with an initial phase lasting one to two days and include mild headaches and muscle pain.
This is followed by the onset of more severe symptoms including high fever, usually a temperature of 40C (104F), or above, more severe muscle pain, and chills.
The best way to prevent an outbreak of Legionnaires' disease is to ensure that any water system under your control is properly maintained. The two most important factors to prevent an outbreak are:
Any water in the system should either be cooled to below 20C (68F), or heated to above 60C (140F).
The water should be kept free of any impurities and never allowed to stagnate.
- Eilish O'Regan
Irish Independent