Legionnaires' disease is an important cause of community-acquired and hospital-acquired pneumonia. Although uncommon, Legionnaires' disease continues to cause disease outbreaks of public health significance. The disease is caused by any species of the Gram-negative aerobic bacteria belonging to the genus Legionella; Legionella pneumophila serogroup 1 is the causative agent of most cases in Euro...

The fi rst 3 chapters of Legionella: Molecular Microbiology deal with clinical aspects of legionellosis. Paul Edelstein provides a fascinating glimpse into the history of Legionnaires’ disease, revealing little-known facts from the perspective of one who participated in the investigation of the 1979 outbreak at Wadsworth Veterans Administration Hospital in Los Angeles, California. Although the ...

The aetiology of acute exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is heterogeneous and still under discussion. Serological studies have suggested that Mycoplasma pneumoniae, Chlamydia pneumoniae and Legionella pneumophila may play a role in acute exacerbations of COPD. The presence of these atypical pathogens in sputum samples was investigated in patients with stable COPD and...

Legionella-contaminated hot water systems and moist sanitary areas in six hospitals were sampled for amoebae by following a standardized collection protocol. Genus identifications and temperature tolerance determinations were made. Amoebae identified as Hartmannella vermiformis (65%), Echinamoebae spp. (15%), Saccamoebae spp. (12%), and Vahlkampfia spp. (9%) were detected in 29 of 56 (52%) hot ...

A study was carried out to determine the pattern of microbiological organisms causing community acquired pneumonia in adult patients admitted to Penang Hospital between November 1999 and August 2000. Altogether, 98 patients (64 males, 34 females) with a mean age (+/- S.D.) of 55.9 (+/- 19.0) (range 15 to 87) years were included in the study. Causative organisms were identified in 42 patients (4...

Solid-organ transplantation is a therapeutic option for many end-stage diseases. One of the most common complications in the post-transplant period are different kind of infections. They are caused by some bacterial pathogens such as Legionella spp., Nocardia spp., Salmonella spp. and Listeria monocytogenes, many viral agents – Cytomegalovirus /CMV/, Herpes simplex virus / HSV/, Varicella-zoste...