Legionnaires’ disease, also known as Legionellosis, is a type of atypical pneumonia caused by the Legionella bacteria. It is estimated that around 90% of Legionnaires’ disease cases are caused by the bacteria Legionella pneumophila. Other types include L. longbeachae, L. feeleii, L. micdadei and L. anisa (Fields, et al., 2002). This serious lung infection causes inflammation of the alveoli and consolidation due to the host’s immune response to the bacterial invasion. This could ultimately impair the basic functions of the lungs and can lead to a life-threatening situation if untreated. The Legionella bacteria are found naturally in fresh water and soil and can also contaminate man-made water systems such as cooling towers, hot water tanks, heaters, showers, air conditioners, decorative fountains, swimming pools, grocery store mist sprayers and hot tubs. Legionnaires’ disease is commonly spread by inhalation of aerosolized infectious particles and less commonly spread by aspiration of contaminated drinking water or working around contaminated soil. It is rare for this disease to be spread between people (McDade et al., 1977). Most healthy individuals exposed to Legionella do not develop pneumonia. Individuals at increased risk of developing this lung infection include those …show more content…
Individuals may also develop a dry cough on the third day and may also experience chest pains and shortness of breath. A productive cough is often the first sign of pneumonia. Almost all cases experience fever and half of the cases have a productive cough. Around half of the cases experience gastrointestinal symptoms and neurological symptoms such diarrhea, vomiting, confusion, loss of coordination, loss of memory and impaired cognition. It usually takes 2-10 days for symptoms to appear once exposed to the bacteria, but may extend to as much as 20 days (Fields, et al.,