testing Archives

July 18, 2022 zacherlaw 0 Comments

Marion County Department of Health to Inspect Hundreds of Pools to Prevent Legionnaires’ Disease

Since 2015, there have been at least 208 illness outbreaks associated with public pools, hot tubs, and water playgrounds according to the CDC. That’s at least 3,646 cases of illness and 13 deaths each year. Among these outbreaks, Legionnaires’ Disease is especially prominent. According to the Marion County Public Health Department, the number is in actuality, difficult to measure, as it’s believed most cases go unreported. The Public Health Department inspects more than 900 private and public pools each year. In fact, according to Michael Furnas, a pool specialist who tests pH levels and disinfectant concentration, estimates that…

June 13, 2022 zacherlaw 0 Comments

Availability Bias and its Relationship with Legionnaires’ Disease and Covid-19

A case study, analyzing how availability bias has affected diagnoses of Covid-19 and Legionella, was recently published and presented a case study of a 56-year-old man who was improperly diagnosed with COVID-19. The patient came in exhibiting many symptoms and diagnostics commonly associated with COIVD-19. Further, he made it known that had had come in contact with confirmed cases of COVID-19 and was deemed to have a high probability of having contracted the disease. Although his COVID-19 tests came back negative three times, due to the powerful effect of anchoring, the diagnosis of COVID-19 remained high. However, on day two…

June 12, 2022 zacherlaw 0 Comments

Illinois Passes legislation Aimed at Protecting At-Risk Residents from Waterborne Health Risks

Illinois Governor JB Pritzker has signed into law legislation aimed at protecting at-risk residents in Illinois from waterborne illnesses such as Legionnaires’ disease. The legislation requires water utilities to notify healthcare and senior living facilities of water supply disruptions that could lead to water quality and microbial risks, such as legionella and other waterborne pathogens. Brad Considine, the Alliance to Prevent Legionnaires’ Disease Director of Strategic Initiatives said, “This legislation is a great step forward in recognizing the need for a comprehensive and proactive approach to preventing Legionnaires’ Disease.” To read more about the Illinois Passes Legislation Aimed at…

April 19, 2022 zacherlaw 0 Comments

Upcoming Study to Assess the Available Detection Methods for Legionella

In December 2020, the European Union (EU) revised the Drinking Water Directive by approving a new set of rules that extended Legionella monitoring to every potable water system in the EU. The new rules entered force on January 12, 2021, with new member states having two years to transpose them into national legislation. Member states are left free to determine their approach to testing, as they can choose the methods they find most appropriate for the purposes of sampling Legionella. In response to this, a new study has been initiated in Italy comparing the culture methods of testing for Legionella…

November 8, 2021 zacherlaw 0 Comments

Legionella Bacteria Found at Fort Sam Houston Barracks

Staff at Joint Base San Antonio-Fort Sam Houston (JBSA) in San Antonio, Texas, discovered Legionella bacteria during routine water testing. More than 80 residents and staff at Liberty Barracks are being relocated to other barracks and dorms across the base. There are no reported cases of Legionnaires’ disease so far. The relocated service members are from the Brooke Army Medical Center’s Soldier Recovery Unit. This unit includes the Behavioral Health Clinic. The building will be treated and retested after 72 hours. JBSA’s early discovery of the bacteria, before any reported cases, highlights the importance of routine testing for Legionella bacteria. To read more about…

November 5, 2021 zacherlaw 0 Comments

Confirmed Case of Legionnaires’ Disease at Missouri Mental Health Facility

A patient at Southeast Missouri Mental Health Center has tested positive for Legionnaires’ disease. The 66-year-old patient was transported to a hospital and is in stable condition. The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services began extensive testing of the water systems at the Farmington, Missouri, facility. The Department is also assisting the facility in implementing Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines. After a deadly outbreak of Legionnaires’ disease at a veterans home in the neighboring state of Illinois, health department officials in Missouri tightened reporting requirements for Legionnaires’ disease in the state. Facilities must report evidence of…

November 5, 2018 zacherlaw 0 Comments

Legionella is Ubiquitous

Every case involving Legionnaires’ disease that this office has been involved in has always had the defense attorney arguing that the bacteria causing Legionnaires’ disease is ubiquitous (found everywhere). By this the defense attorneys mean that because the bacteria legionella can be found naturally in nature, their clients should not be liable to pay money damages to my clients. What the defense attorneys don’t tell you is that although legionella bacteria may be found in water everywhere, it only causes disease such as Legionnaire’s disease when the property owner does not properly maintain the water system. Failure to properly maintain…

October 24, 2018 zacherlaw 0 Comments

Cooling Towers as a Source of Legionnaires’ Disease

This office has had numerous inquiries regarding persons contracting Legionnaires’ disease. Often times the person does not know where they acquired the disease. Unfortunately, many times the person acquired the disease from a cooling tower. The cooling tower need not be in the vicinity of the person who acquired the disease, or even have been identified by health authorities. Consequently, the person may not know that a cooling tower has caused him or her to get sick. These cases are considered sporadic in nature. On the other hand, when a cooling tower has been identified as the source, as in…

October 23, 2018 zacherlaw 0 Comments

Spas, Hot Tubs and Jacuzzis as source of Legionnaires’ disease

This office has handled many cases of Legionnaires’ disease acquired from a spa, hot tub or Jacuzzi. The recent outbreak in Hampton, New Hampshire is a case in point. One possible source of this outbreak is in the indoor spa at the Sands Resort in Hampton. The reasons a spa may be a source is due to the nature of the system supplying water to the spa. The system itself is called a closed loop system. This means that the water supplying the spa, hot tub or Jacuzzi is in a continuous loop closed off from other water systems in…

April 9, 2018 zacherlaw 0 Comments

Guidelines and Resources for Legionella

In a previous post, we discussed an introduction to water system maintenance. More detailed resources, however, can clearly be of great assistance in situations like this. As such, the CDC actually provides a great page to review other significant guidelines and standards that may be applicable. Resources on the page include everything from ASHRAE to the Cooling Tower Institute however what’s also of interest is that the page provides links to more healthcare-specific guidelines including those from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services as well as, of course, the CDC’s own guidelines on both matters. Here are some of…