2015 Bronx Legionnaires' disease outbreaks

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2015 Bronx Legionnaires' disease outbreaks
Lincoln Hospital 149 Park rain jeh.jpg
Lincoln Hospital in the Bronx, one of five buildings where the second outbreak was spread
DateDecember 2014 (2014-12) (first outbreak)
July 2015 (2015-07) (second outbreak)
Duration2 months (first outbreak)
1.5 months [1] (second outbreak)
Location The Bronx, New York City:
Causeunder investigation
OutcomeAffected buildings were ordered to be decontaminated within 14 days, under the threat of misdemeanor charges
Deaths10
Non-fatal injuriesOver 100

In 2015, there were two outbreaks of Legionnaires' disease in the Bronx, New York City, United States. Between January and August 2015, one hundred and thirty people in New York City were infected with Legionnaires', but the majority of them were in the Bronx. [2]

Contents

Legionnaires Disease is an acute type of pneumonia that is caused by the inhalation of aerosolized water containing the Legionella bacteria. [3] Forty-two Legionella species have been classified to date, and these bacteria can grow in areas where there is warm water, such as cooling towers. [4] [5]

Legionella pneumophila bacteria Legionella pneumophila (SEM).jpg
Legionella pneumophila bacteria

January 2015

In January 2015, Legionnaires' disease sickened 8 people near Co-op City's cooling towers in the northeast Bronx. Twelve people were diagnosed with Legionnaires' disease between December 2014 and the end of the outbreak in January 2015. [6]

August 2015

In an unrelated July and August 2015 outbreak, the disease affected at least 120 people and caused at least twelve deaths in the South Bronx area. [7] The cause of the outbreak was traced back to the Opera House Hotel on July 10, 2015, and was declared as over as of August 20. Following the Morrisania outbreak, city officials stated that they would be pursuing new regulations for cooling towers. [2] [8] [9] [10] Affected buildings were also ordered to be decontaminated within 14 days, under the threat of misdemeanor charges. [7]

September 2015

On September 21, 2015, 13 more cases of Legionnaires Disease were identified and were said to be unrelated to the outbreaks from previous months. 35 cooling towers were inspected and 15 of these tested positive for the Legionella bacteria. After the cases surfaced, city officials put legislative programs into effect that require building owners to perform quarterly inspections and to verify that the cooling towers have been tested and are free of the Legionnella bacteria. [11]

Related Research Articles

Pontiac fever is an acute, nonfatal respiratory disease caused by various species of Gram-negative bacteria in the genus Legionella. It causes a mild upper respiratory infection that resembles acute influenza. Pontiac fever resolves spontaneously and often goes undiagnosed. Both Pontiac fever and the more severe Legionnaire's disease may be caused by the same bacteria, but Pontiac fever does not include pneumonia.

<i>Legionella</i> Pathogenic genus of gram-negative bacteria and the related disease

Legionella is a genus of pathogenic gram-negative bacteria that includes the species L. pneumophila, causing legionellosis including a pneumonia-type illness called Legionnaires' disease and a mild flu-like illness called Pontiac fever.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cooling tower</span> Device which rejects waste heat to the atmosphere through the cooling of a water stream

A cooling tower is a device that rejects waste heat to the atmosphere through the cooling of a coolant stream, usually a water stream, to a lower temperature. Cooling towers may either use the evaporation of water to remove heat and cool the working fluid to near the wet-bulb air temperature or, in the case of dry cooling towers, rely solely on air to cool the working fluid to near the dry-bulb air temperature using radiators.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Co-op City, Bronx</span> Neighborhood of the Bronx in New York City

Co-op City is a cooperative housing development located in the northeast section of the borough of the Bronx in New York City. It is bounded by Interstate 95 to the southwest, west, and north and the Hutchinson River Parkway to the east and southeast, and is partially in the Baychester and Eastchester neighborhoods. With 43,752 residents as of the 2010 United States Census, it is the largest housing cooperative in the world. It is in New York City Council District 12.

<i>Legionella pneumophila</i> Species of bacterium

Legionella pneumophila is an aerobic, pleomorphic, flagellated, non-spore-forming, Gram-negative bacterium of the genus Legionella. L. pneumophila is the primary human pathogenic bacterium in this group. In nature, L. pneumophila infects freshwater and soil amoebae of the genera Acanthamoeba and Naegleria. This pathogen is found commonly near freshwater environments and will then invade the amoebae found in these environments, using them to carry out metabolic functions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Legionellales</span> Order of bacteria

The Legionellales are an order of Pseudomonadota. Like all Pseudomonadota, they are Gram-negative. They comprise two families, typified by Legionella and Coxiella, both of which include notable pathogens. For example, Q fever is caused by Coxiella burnetii and Legionella pneumophila causes Legionnaires' disease and Pontiac fever.

Legionella longbeachae is one species of the family Legionellaceae. It was first isolated from a patient in Long Beach, California. It is found predominantly in potting soil and compost. Human infection from L. longbeachae is particularly common in Australia, but cases have been documented in other countries including the United States, Japan, Greece and the UK.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rickettsialpox</span> Medical condition

Rickettsialpox is a mite-borne infectious illness caused by bacteria of the genus Rickettsia. Physician Robert Huebner and self-trained entomologist Charles Pomerantz played major roles in identifying the cause of the disease after an outbreak in 1946 in a New York City apartment complex, documented in "The Alerting of Mr. Pomerantz," an article by medical writer Berton Roueché.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bubonic plague</span> Human and animal disease

Bubonic plague is one of three types of plague caused by the bacterium Yersinia pestis. One to seven days after exposure to the bacteria, flu-like symptoms develop. These symptoms include fever, headaches, and vomiting, as well as swollen and painful lymph nodes occurring in the area closest to where the bacteria entered the skin. Acral necrosis, the dark discoloration of skin, is another symptom. Occasionally, swollen lymph nodes, known as "buboes", may break open.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2002 Barrow-in-Furness legionellosis outbreak</span> Disease outbreak in England

The 2002 Barrow-in-Furness Legionnaires' disease outbreak was a fatal outbreak of Legionellosis which occurred in Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria, England. It was and still remains among the worst such outbreaks in history.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vanessa Gibson</span> American politician

Vanessa L. Gibson is an American politician who has served as the Borough President of The Bronx since 2022. She served as a member of the New York City Council, representing the 16th district from 2014 to 2021. A Democrat, she was elected Bronx Borough President in November 2021 to a four-year term beginning January 2022, running on a platform focused on recovery from COVID-19 impact, food insecurity and housing instability. She is the first female and first African American Bronx Borough President.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1976 Philadelphia Legionnaires' disease outbreak</span> First occasion of a cluster of a pneumonia cases later identified as Legionnaires disease

The 1976 Legionnaires' disease outbreak, occurring in the late summer in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States was the first occasion in which a cluster of a particular type of pneumonia cases were determined to be caused by the Legionella pneumophila bacteria.

Legionella anisa is a Gram-negative bacterium, one of more than 40 species in the family Legionellaceae. After Legionella pneumophila, this species has been isolated most frequently from water samples. This species is also one of the several pathogenic forms of Legionella having been associated with rare clinical cases of illness including Pontiac fever and Legionnaires' disease.

Legionella cherrii is an aerobic, flagellated, Gram-negative bacterium from the genus Legionella. It was isolated from a heated water sample in Minnesota. L. cherrii is similar to another Legionella species, L. pneumophila, and is believed to cause major respiratory problems.

Legionella jordanis is a Gram-negative bacterium from the genus Legionella which was isolated from the Jordan River in Bloomington, Indiana and from the sewage in DeKalb County, Georgia. L. jordanis is a rare human pathogen and can cause respiratory tract infections.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Legionnaires' disease</span> Legionellosis that is characterized by severe form of infection producing pneumonia

Legionnaires' disease is a form of atypical pneumonia caused by any species of Legionella bacteria, quite often Legionella pneumophila. Signs and symptoms include cough, shortness of breath, high fever, muscle pains, and headaches. Nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea may also occur. This often begins 2–10 days after exposure.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2014 Portugal legionellosis outbreak</span> Disease outbreak in Portugal

The 2014 Portugal legionellosis outbreak was an outbreak of legionellosis in multiple cities of the Lisbon district in Portugal, caused by the release of Legionella bacteria from the cooling towers of a fertilizer plant in Forte da Casa, Vila Franca de Xira. It began on 7 November 2014 and affected mostly people in Póvoa de Santa Iria, Forte da Casa and Vialonga, in the municipality of Vila Franca de Xira. Paulo Macedo, the Portuguese Health Minister, declared the outbreak extinct on 21 November. The outbreak resulted in 375 cases and 12 casualties.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2022 Tucumán legionellosis outbreak</span> Disease outbreak in Argentina

The 2022 Tucumán legionellosis outbreak refers to an epidemic that originated in San Miguel de Tucumán, Argentina. It was first identified on Saturday, 20 August 2022, when 7 people arrived at the Tucumán Hospital with fever, malaise, shortness of breath, and headache.

References

  1. Williams, Jaime (2015-08-28). "The fat lady sings • Bronx Times". Bxtimes.com. Archived from the original on 2015-09-23. Retrieved 2015-11-02.
  2. 1 2 "A Belated Look at New York's Cooling Towers, Prime Suspect in Legionnaires' Outbreak". The New York Times. 4 August 2015. Retrieved 5 August 2015.
  3. Euser, Sjoerd M; Boogmans, Bas; Brandsema, Petra; Wouters, Mieke; Den Boer, Jeroen W (2014). "Legionnaires' disease after using an industrial pressure test pump: A case report". Journal of Medical Case Reports. 8: 31. doi: 10.1186/1752-1947-8-31 . PMC   3917411 . PMID   24467827.
  4. Yu, Victor L.; Plouffe, Joseph F.; Pastoris, Maddalena Castellani; Stout, Janet E.; Schousboe, Mona; Widmer, Andreas; Summersgill, James; File, Thomas; Heath, Christopher M.; Paterson, David L.; Chereshsky, Annette (2002). "Distribution of LegionellaSpecies and Serogroups Isolated by Culture in Patients with Sporadic Community‐Acquired Legionellosis: An International Collaborative Survey". The Journal of Infectious Diseases. 186 (1): 127–8. doi:10.1086/341087. PMID   12089674.
  5. "Legionnaires' Disease". The New York Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. The City of New York. Archived from the original on 7 October 2015. Retrieved 22 October 2015.
  6. Ben Kochman (13 January 2015). "Co-op City towers contaminated with Legionnaire's Disease bacteria". New York Daily News. Retrieved 5 August 2015.
  7. 1 2 "Legionnaires' Disease Continues To Spread In South Bronx". Huffington Post . Associated Press. 6 August 2015. Retrieved 7 August 2015.
  8. "Legionnaires' Disease Bacteria Found in A/C on Bronx Hospital, Mayor says". DNAinfo New York. Archived from the original on 2015-08-01.
  9. David Shortell (2 August 2015). "There have been 65 cases since mid-July - CNN.com". CNN.
  10. "City confirms 71 cases of Legionnaire's Disease". capitalnewyork.com.
  11. Mueller, Benjamin (1 October 2015). "One Dead in New Bronx Outbreak of Legionnaires' Disease". The New York Times. The New York Times. Retrieved 26 October 2015.