Legionella longbeachae detected in an industrial cooling tower linked to a legionellosis outbreak, New Zealand, 2015; possible waterborne transmission?

ABSTRACT: A legionellosis outbreak at an industrial site was investigated to identify and control the source. Cases were identified from disease notifications, workplace illness records, and from clinicians. Cases were interviewed for symptoms and risk factors and tested for legionellosis. Implicated environmental sources were sampled and tested for legionella. We identified six cases with Legionnaires' disease and seven with Pontiac fever; all had been exposed to aerosols from the cooling towers on the site. Nine cases had evidence of infection with either Legionella pneumophila serogroup (sg) 1 or Legionella longbeachae sg1; these organisms were also isolated from the cooling towers. There was 100% DNA sequence homology between cooling tower and clinical isolates of L. pneumophila sg1 using sequen

SUBMITTER: Thornley CN 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9148817 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature