International Archives

October 8, 2021 zacherlaw 0 Comments

Melbourne man dies after being exposed to Legionnaires’ disease from potting soil

A 79-year-old grandfather died after contracting Legionnaires’ disease in September 2021. He was exposed to legionella bacteria while opening a bag of potting soil to help his wife repot tomato plants. He began experiencing symptoms a week later and was admitted to the hospital, where his condition rapidly deteriorated. He was placed into a medically induced coma and passed away shortly thereafter. The ingredients and dampness of potting soil increase the risk of exposure to legionella bacteria. To read more about the link between gardening and Legionnaires’ disease, as well as tips on how to protect yourself, see our previous…

March 29, 2018 zacherlaw 0 Comments

Rubber Ducks May Harbor Legionella Bacteria

Rubber ducks are a classic component of the stereotypical bath and have made an impact on numerous individual’s lives. Yet with its constant presence in our bathing rituals and lives, an uncomfortable subject may inadvertently emerge; how clean/safe is this object. According to a study by American and Swiss researchers, toy ducks appear to be a breeding ground for microbes and bacteria like Legionella. In the study, water released from four out of every five ducks found Legionella along with other Pseudomonas aeruginosa bacteria, a fairly disturbing frequency. The study, which was conducted by the Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science…

March 26, 2018 zacherlaw 0 Comments

Microarray Rapid Tests Developed at Technical University of Munich

Last week, researchers at the Technical University of Munich announced that they had developed a microarray rapid test which can detect Legionella in around 35 minutes. Now there is, in fact, a rapid test for detecting Legionella currently in clinics; urinalysis. But according to the head of the research group and the Chair of Analytical Chemistry and Water Chemistry at the Technical University of Munich PD Dr. Michael Seidel, the urinalysis test “serves only as a first indication and is not suitable for screening the water of technical systems,”. The research is part of the “LegioTyper” project which is funded by the German…

March 22, 2018 zacherlaw 0 Comments

Public Services and Procurement Canada Suggests Study Data With Spartan May Be Unreliable

Earlier this week, we wrote about Spartan Bioscience and how the company had partnered with the Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC) to conduct a study examining cooling towers at federal government buildings. The results from the test were a bit negative as it was revealed that around 39% of the cooling towers had tested positive for Legionella bacteria at levels greater than 10 bacteria per milliliter while approximately 8% of the cooling towers tested positive for Legionella levels that were greater than 100 bacteria per milliliter. Now, about a week later from when the initial results were revealed, the PSPC is coming…

March 19, 2018 zacherlaw 0 Comments

New On-Site Legionella Testing Kit Used In Canadian Government Buildings Study

About a month ago, we wrote about Spartan Bioscience and their rapid on-site Legionella DNA testing. Last Wednesday, Spartan Bioscience announced their results from a study examining Canadian federal government buildings. This 12-week long study tested 51 different cooling towers across Montreal, Ottawa, and Toronto and compared their weekly on-site Legionella DNA testing against the monthly Legionella culture testing that at the moment, tends to be the far more common method for testing. The Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC) designed and ultimately performed this study in collaboration with Spartan Bioscience, a notable partnership since PSPC is one of the…

March 16, 2018 zacherlaw 0 Comments

Legionella Found at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany

Earlier this week, we posted about Baumholder, a US army base in Germany that had to decontaminate around 20 housing units after finding high levels of Legionella bacteria there. Now, just 35 miles away, officials at the Landstuhl Regional Medical Center are ordering the decontamination of the hospital’s water system after finding Legionella bacteria in two separate areas of the facility. According to the hospital’s spokeswoman Stacy Sanning, the inspectors had originally tested there on February 23 however only recently notified the Landstuhl Regional Medical Center a few days ago of the high levels of Legionella bacteria. Though it remains…

March 13, 2018 zacherlaw 0 Comments

Legionella Bacteria Found at Baumholder Housing, Forcing Decontamination

At the Baumholder Army Base in Germany, approximately 20 buildings were decontaminated after finding high levels Legionella bacteria. According to the base doctors, no one staying at the base tested positive for Legionnaires’ disease. Army officials explained their attempts to decontaminate the buildings last Wednesday and according to the commander of U.S. Army Garrison Rheinland-Pfalz Col. Keith Igyarto, workers are doing everything necessary to protect the health of everyone living in the base. The discovery of these buildings came about when the Army tested 124 buildings within the military base and community for Legionella bacteria this past February in order…

February 16, 2018 zacherlaw 0 Comments

2 Cases of Legionnaires’ Disease Found From Car Wash Use

The source of Legionella bacteria and where individuals contract Legionnaires’ disease can often be unexpected. In a study from researchers out of the University of Padua, it was found that two men contracted Legionnaires’ disease after using two separate car washes in Italy. And while the location may seem somewhat surprising, according to microbiologist Dr Tom Makin, a senior consultant at Legionella control in the UK, perhaps it shouldn’t be. Indeed Dr. Makin remarks that, “(C)ar washes are capable of generating the right sized aerosols that can be inhaled into the lungs where the Legionella bacteria cause infection, such as pneumonia.’…

February 12, 2018 zacherlaw 0 Comments

A Brief History of Legionnaires’ Disease (Part II)

In a previous post, we discussed the origins and very early beginnings of Legionnaires’ disease. In this post, we are hoping to slowly move through time and discuss some significant outbreaks and moments of Legionnaires’ disease history. Perhaps the first major outbreak after the 1976 Philadelphia incident would be with Stafford, England. In April 1985, approximately 175 people were admitted into the Kingsmead Stafford Hospital with pneumonia. Of these cases, around 28 individuals ended up dying with the origin of the infection being discovered to be the Stafford District Hospital. About a decade later, in March 1999, the Bovenkarspel legionellosis…

February 6, 2018 zacherlaw 0 Comments

EU Push for Water Safety Accompanies Push for Additional Water Fountains

Last Thursday, February 1, 2018, Frans Timmermans, the vice-president of the European commission, announced changes to the drinking water directive which put additional responsibilities on national governments within the EU. These responsibilities, specifically, would push national governments to provide greater access to drinking fountains as well as prompt additional restaurants to offer free tap water. This is all being done to reduce plastic waste and ultimately improve the health of Europeans yet in order to do this second objective fully, the initiative must also ensure water safety is being elevated as well. This means that this current push will not only raise…